The low down on Molasses (or weird stuff I wondered about)

I've always wondered what the differences are between fancy, cooking, unsulphured and blackstrap molasses. So, I went and looked it up. 

This is what I found:

The word "Molasses" is used to cover a variety of products in the sugar industry:  

Fancy Molasses - is a direct product of sugar cane and is in no way a by-product of any sugar manufacturing process. It is also known as Gold Star when used in baking. The results are a light colored, sweet product, also good as a topping on bread, biscuits, and crackers. Fancy Molasses is an excellent source of iron, calcium, and vitamin B and serves as a great energy food. 

 Lite Molasses - contains 40% less sugar than Fancy Molasses. Recipes made with Light Molasses have a subtle flavor, and are lighter in color. Cookies are slightly softer while breads are more crusty. Light molasses comes from the first boiling of the sugar.

Cooking Molasses - is a blend of Fancy and Blackstrap Molasses. The use of Cooking Molasses results in a darker, less sweet baked product (great for ginger snaps--YUM!). 

Unsulphured Molasses - has the best flavor and is made from sun-ripened cane which has grown 12-15 months. 

Blackstrap Molasses - The thick dark brown liquid obtained from the refining of sugar cane is commonly referred to as "Blackstrap Molasses". It is a direct by-product of the sugar making process and has a slightly bitter robust flavor. Two of its more common uses is in the production of industrial alcohol and feeding livestock.