Key takeaways
- Alone, carbohydrates do not melt ice. Beet juice and similar additives work only blended with salt brine or salt.
- The selling points are a lower freezing point, better sticking and less corrosion, and Clear Roads studied them because the claims were not well documented.
- The cost is organic matter, phosphorus and nitrogen in runoff, which can deplete oxygen and feed algae.
- Treated salt is rock salt coated with a liquid, often magnesium chloride, sometimes with an organic additive and a dye.
On this page
What is beet juice deicer?
Not beet juice from a jar. The additives sold to road agencies are agricultural products, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency explains, often made by fermenting grains or by processing cane or beet sugar. They are carbohydrates, and the MPCA is blunt about them: alone, carbohydrates do not aid in melting ice or snow.
So they are always blended. Agencies add a small amount to salt brine, the liquid sprayed on pavement before storms (anti-icing vs de-icing explains that strategy), or to rock salt itself. The salt still does the melting.
Why do road agencies add it to salt?
The MPCA lists the usual reasons for blending an agricultural additive into brine or rock salt:
- A lower freezing point for the brine, so it keeps working a little colder.
- Interference with ice crystal formation.
- Better sticking to the pavement, so less of it is lost before it works.
- Less corrosion, though the MPCA's own comparison table says claims that beet juice reduces corrosion need further evaluation.
The appeal is a better-performing brine and, potentially, lower application rates. MDOT has made the same argument about plain salt. Its 2012 bounce-and-scatter study found that pre-wetting salt and spreading at slower speeds kept significantly more material on the road, and its maintenance advisory now calls for all salt on state roads to be pre-wet with a liquid chloride at 7 to 10 gallons per ton, with spreading trucks held to 35 mph or less.
Not every claim has held up. Clear Roads, a research program for winter road maintenance, studied liquid agricultural by-products because manufacturer claims about them, from freezing-point depression to using UV light to prevent ice, were not well documented.
What are the downsides?
Sugar is food for bacteria and algae. The MPCA's comparison table rates beet juice's water-quality impact as high: organic matter that uses up oxygen as it breaks down, enrichment with phosphorus and nitrogen, and heavy metals. It warns that agricultural products can cause short-term problems, including noticeable algal blooms or fish kills.
That is why MDOT screens liquids. Any anti-icing or de-icing liquid used on a state trunkline must be on MDOT's statewide contract, be listed on the Clear Roads Qualified Products List, or be a chloride product that passes lab limits for metals and phosphorus, with a pH of 6 to 9 and a freezing point of −20°F or lower.
| Product | Melts ice alone? | What it adds | Main concern |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salt brine | Yes, like rock salt | Salt already in solution | Same chloride load as rock salt |
| Beet juice and other carbohydrate blends | No | Lower freezing point, stickiness | Oxygen demand, phosphorus and nitrogen |
| Cheese brine, pickle juice | Depends on the batch | Cheap or free | Chemistry can vary from batch to batch |
| Treated rock salt | Yes | Faster start, colder working range (maker's claims) | Higher price per ton; still chloride |
From the Minnesota Stormwater Manual, MDOT advisories and manufacturer literature.
What does treated salt on a bag mean?
It means rock salt coated with a liquid before it is sold. Compass Minerals describes its Thawrox treated salt as rock salt treated with three things: liquid magnesium chloride for lower-temperature performance, an organic carbohydrate it calls a corrosion inhibitor and viscosity modifier, and a colorant so operators can see where it landed. Compass rates it to about 5°F and says less of it bounces off the road than other products. Those are the manufacturer's claims.
As a buyer:
- Read the ingredient list, not the color. The coating may be magnesium chloride, calcium chloride, a carbohydrate or a mix.
- The color is a dye for visibility, not a measure of strength.
- Treated is still salt. The chloride does the melting, and the rules on amounts still apply: see how much salt you actually need, and pet-safe ice melt if you have dogs.
Should you make your own deicer at home?
No. Sugar water is the clearest case: if carbohydrates alone do not melt ice, a sugar solution poured on the steps does not either.
Pickle juice and cheese brine are salty, but how salty can vary from batch to batch. The MPCA's advice to agencies considering waste-stream products is to confirm each batch has consistent chemistry, learn its side effects, work out what to blend it with, get approval, and test it on a small area first. A homeowner can do none of that, and the extra organic matter goes down the same storm drain.
For home use, clear the snow first, use a measured amount of a product made for the job, and match it to the temperature: does salt work in cold weather explains the limits.
Sources
- Minnesota Stormwater Manual (MPCA): how salt works and deicing chemicals — deicing additives, waste-stream products, comparison table
- Clear Roads project 13-02: non-chloride liquid agricultural by-products
- MDOT Maintenance Advisory 2013-01: best practices for applying deicing materials
- MDOT Maintenance Advisory 2008-05: liquid deicing chemical purchase guidance
- Compass Minerals: Thawrox treated salt FAQ
Written by the Macomb Lawn & Snow Solutions team in Macomb Township, Michigan. We plow and salt homes and businesses across all 26 Macomb County communities, November 15 to April 15. Published October 5, 2026. About us · How we research these guides · How our dispatch works