Tradition, technology and a changing climate

By : Alison Chave.

On a crisp March morning in a local sugarbush, vacuum pumps provide a steady
hum where metal buckets once caught the slow drip of sap. The very short
maple syrup season is underway.

Most maple-syrup producers now use elaborate tubing systems with vacuum pumps, smart tapping systems with sensors, and energy-efficient processing methods like reverse osmosis, where up to 95% of water is removed before boiling. These technologies have increased sap yield, and reduced energy consumption by as much as 91%.
Yet making maple syrup remains labour-intensive, and many farms are increasingly relying on seasonal workers from Mexico and Guatemala. Equipment is expensive and can create challenges for smaller sugar bushes.

Managing Supply and Global Demand

Tempo met with Dave Hall, Regional President (Montérégie East) of the Quebec Maple Syrup Producers (QMSP) and a sixth-generation producer of both maple and lamb products at Hallacres in Iron Hill. His son Andrew leads the next generation. Dave explains that QMSP strategically manages the supply of syrup in Quebec. Syrup leaves the sugar shack in two ways: producers can sell directly to consumers, or sell the syrup wholesale in 45-gallon (205-liter) barrels to bottling plants or to the QMSP’s strategic reserve (the world’s only maple “bank”). He notes that QMSP has helped make Quebec the world’s top maple producer not only by managing supply, but by letting producers set fair prices and by promoting maple syrup globally.

Demand for natural sweeteners continues to grow and consumers are recognizing that maple syrup is healthier than cane sugar – containing essential nutritional elements including vitamins, minerals, amino acids, phytohormones and polyphenols,” Dave says.

Quebec syrup sales have quadrupled since 2010, and consumption jumped 15% last year alone. To keep up with demand, Dave says Quebec syrup producers are asking for access to 200,000 hectares of public hardwood forests, which typically are exploited for logging.

Sustainability and Organic Production

Dave produces organic syrup from 25,000 taps. He indicates that sustainability certification programs are gaining traction, reinforcing consumer confidence. In maple syrup production, the Canadian Organic Standards cover aspects such as sugar bush management, plant diversity, pest control and maple-sap harvesting and processing. From a sustainability standpoint, he notes that tapping maples, rather than logging them, helps forests, the economy, and the environment—especially through carbon capture. Logged forests require 50 years for maple trees to regrow to a tap-worthy size.

A Family Operation at Erablière David

Over at Erablière David on Stagecoach Road, Sylvain Rousseau and Lise Graveline are busy collecting and boiling sap from their 3,600-tap sugar bush. After 30 years of farming in Dunham, they switched to maple syrup in 2011. Erablière David sells syrup (single or gallon) on site, as well as other maple products. They are seeing an increase in demand, including from more international tourists and out-of-province Canadian visitors, appreciative of the quality and taste that come from a mix of Sugar Maple and Red Maple. Their sugar bush operation is a family affair, with son David lending a hand and a granddaughter already enthusiastic about syrup making.

Climate and Environmental Pressures

Maple production depends on freezing nights followed by mild daytime temperatures, creating the pressure that allows sap to flow. Increasingly, that rhythm is becoming unpredictable.

Lise notes that “putting tubes in the maples this year has not been easy, with high snow levels and extreme cold”.

Sylvain adds that the increased presence of ticks makes removing the tubes trickier in the spring.
But as steam rises from sugar shacks across the region, Quebec’s sweetest tradition continues, adapting, evolving and flowing with the times through advanced technology and managing strategic reserves effectively.