SAPJACK Salutes Record-Setting Maple Harvest in VERMONT
🚨Northeast Kingdom Newsflash🚨
The great state of Vermont set a new record this year for most maple syrup harvested, producing about 2.5 million gallons of syrup.
Not only is that more than any other year in the state’s modern history, but it’s a shade over half of the total U.S. output of 5 million gallons.
Needless to say, our crew is sappy about the news and is proud to have played a part in such a successful maple harvest in the Green Mountain State.
One could even argue this latest news solidifies our home state’s status as the nation’s leading syrup producer; our 2.5 million gallon bonanza easily bested friendly nearby rivals New York (845,000 gallons) and Maine (672,000).
The record 2.5 million gallons of syrup also topped the state’s 2021 total.
But how? Why?
Turns out favorable sap-tapping weather was one key factor.
“Despite all the technological advances that we’ve seen in the maple industry, weather still has a huge part to play in how much sap is collected in any given year,“ University of Vermont Extension maple specialist Mark Isselhardt told Vermont Public Radio.
“And it just so happens that 2022 was an excellent year for weather. March was warm enough to see sap flow, but not too warm for many sugar makers. And then April remained relatively cool. And that allowed for a very long season collecting high-quality sap.”
Isselhardt, who reported visiting over 40 maple operations this spring, noted that the record yield is also due to “sugar makers adopting more modern sap collection practices, being really good at checking for leaks and the tubing systems and really getting on it when the weather is starting.”
We’re passionate about the art and science of syrup-making, and we’re proud to say this year’s new Vermont record includes a whole lotta bottles of SAPJACK.
We’re talking:
And if you want to know more about sap production in Vermont and beyond, check out the new data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture in this graphic published in Vermont Biz. The stat sheet also reflects both state and national increases in: number of taps and yield per tap.
So, what does the future hold for America’s top syrup-producing state and the maple industry at large?
According to Isselhardt, the outlook for this sweet, single-ingredient product is bright (not to mention golden delicious).
“If more and more people get a taste of pure maple syrup and understand what it is and how to use it in their daily lives,” he said, “then I think that demand will increase.”
One final, helpful note: If reading about record levels of maple syrup whets your appetite for what we like to call “the true taste of the forest,” we invite you to check out both our story and the single-source, organic maple products made right here in the heart of U.S. syrup country — our 20,000-acre forest nestled in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom.
