Treacle

Historically, the Middle English term was used by herbalists and apothecaries to describe a medicine (also called theriac or theriaca), composed of many ingredients, that was used as an antidote for poisons, snakebites, and various other ailments. the latinisation of the Greek (), the feminine of (), 'concerning venomous beasts', which comes from (), 'wild animal, beast'. ==Production==

Treacle is made from the syrup that remains after sugar is refined. Raw sugars are first treated in a process called affination. When dissolved, the resulting liquor contains the minimum of dissolved non-sugars to be removed by treatment with activated carbon or bone char. The dark-coloured washings are treated separately, without carbon or bone char. They are boiled to grain (i.e., until sugar crystals precipitate out) in a vacuum pan, forming a low-grade (boiled mass) which is centrifuged, yielding a brown sugar and a liquid by-product—treacle. Black treacle naturally contains relatively high levels of sulphite (>100 ppm, expressed in sulphur dioxide equivalent). These levels are deemed safe for the majority of the population. However, some allergic and respiratory reactions have been reported particularly amongst asthmatics, such that the United States Food and Drug Administration requires that levels over 10ppm, i.e. >10 mg/kg, be declared on the ingredients label. ==See also==