Sugar: The Sweetest Poison audio documentary cover
Culture 36 min

Sugar: The Sweetest Poison

A single crop built the modern world — and the machine never stopped

Sugar production in the 17th and 18th centuries was the most profitable industry in the world. It was powered entirely by enslaved labour, created the first global trade network, and established the patterns of extraction that still shape the global economy. This is the story of how a luxury spice became a mass addiction — and what it cost.

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sugar slavery colonialism triangular trade Caribbean British Empire economics food history consumer activism corporate power indentured labour Bristol Tate & Lyle Fanjul Harvard science corruption supply chain abolition

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