During the 17th century in the Caribbean, sugar farming was widespread and a major source of income. There was one issue; once the sugar cane which was harvested was boiled, it would leave a viscous liquid by-product. This by-product was molasses. Having no practical use at the time, the molasses produced was half of the amount of sugar created. The plantation owners fed the molasses to their cattle and the slaves, but this still left a large amount left over. With no use for the molasses, plantation owners dumped the ‘waste’ into the ocean. Eventually, someone figured out that mixing the molasses with liquid skimmed off the cane juice, and fermenting it created a starting point for distillation – and the liquor that this distillation produced became known as Rum.