Ron Noon has been studying the sugar industry for many years. When we asked him to describe the subject matter of his talk, he replied as follows:

"Sugar may have delighted palates for centuries but its history is grisly even here in the land of the conny-onny butty and Tate & Lyle. There is no biological or physiological need for the sugar crystals in your breakfast cereals. Its history is based on wealth not health, want not need. The 'white stuff' has always been intensely political, producing fabulous wealth for some and great unhappiness and suffering for so many others. In the 1930s the Cuban anthropologist Fernando Ortez, referred to this special food as 'the favoured child of capitalism'. Why?

"The links between Liverpool and sugar, which were broken in 1981 with the closure of Henry Tate's mother plant, the tragically named Love Lane refinery, are part of a much bigger global story. Sugar is, from a nutritional point of view, Sweet FA! It is an 'empty calorie' shorn of any other nutrients, but achingly addictive and a perfectly legal drug for billions to be hooked on. In this historical roller coaster of a talk about sugar highs and lows I want to 'agitate' your thoughts and comments about the hitherto much neglected history of Sucrose and indeed the PRICE OF SUGAR in 2011. For further information visit my website at www.lovelanelives.com"