Sucrose Losses in the Early Season. We had the most difficulties, in the early season, to achieve the required target FES pH values for this study, and the range achieved was only pH 6.1-6.6. Sucrose acid hydrolysis occurs up to pH 8.3 (6), and the lower the pH, the more hydrolysis occurs. Overall, across the whole season, as the FES target pH increased, hydrolysis usually decreased although results were the most anomalous in the early season (compare Figure 5a with Figure 5b,c).