Abstract: Beet juice is purified, then concentrated and treated in several steps for boiling and centrifugal separation to effect recovery of sucrose therefrom. The molasses remaining after the separation of sucrose from massecuite is treated with .alpha.-galactosidase to effect hydrolysis of raffinose present in the molasses. The resultant raffinose hydrolyzate is introduced into a calcium saccharate-forming step, wherein quicklime is continuously added to the hydrolyzate to form saccharate within the hydrolyzate. From the calcium saccharate-forming step, nearly the same volume of the saccharate-containing solution as that of the raffinose hydrolyzate fed therein is forwarded to a filtering and washing step. The resultant saccharate cake is sent back to the step for purification.

Abstract: A method for the recovery of refined .alpha.-galactosidase is disclosed. This method comprises the steps of bringing an .alpha.-galactosidase-containing liquid into contact with a weakly acidic cation-exchange resin in the presence of a buffer solution for thereby allowing .alpha.-galactosidase to be selectively adsorbed by said resin, desorbing the adsorbed .alpha.-galactosidase from said resin by use of a buffer solution of a type such that at least one of the two factors, concentration and pH, has a higher value than that of the buffer solution used in said adsorption and thereafter recovering the desorbed .alpha.-galactosidase.

Abstract: When novel mold strains belonging to genus Absidia are cultured in an inducer-containing medium of the type ordinarily used for the culture of .alpha.-galactosidase producing molds, notably high .alpha.-galactosidase activity is produced and absolutely no invertase activity is produced in the mycelia. By treating beet molasses or beet juice with these mycelia, the yield of sucrose can easily be enhanced, since raffinose which is a substance impeding the crystallization of sucrose is effectively decomposed and sucrose is allowed to remain intact.