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Verona maple show moves to Syracuse
Keith Schiebel | January 3, 2019
SYRACUSE, N.Y. —A New Year means one thing to maple producers …must be conference time!
For the past 19 years, that meant travel to Verona. Not this year. Travel a bit further down the New York Thruway…or a bit closer...to our new home in Syracuse.
With the same anticipation as firing up a new RO for the first time or adding a new vacuum pump to a collection system, the January Maple Conference is transforming into a new standard for the maple industry…a classic!
Welcome to the 24th Annual Maple Conference and the inaugural "Mid-Winter Maple Classic" at the New York State Fair! We are confident that we’ll have another highly successful show and welcome your participation. With our new location comes new surroundings, new procedures, and a fresh approach to improving an already fantastic show; we think you’ll agree that the new host site is an exceptional facility for our event.
This year’s Mid-Winter Maple Classic is this Friday and Saturday, January 4th and 5th, 2019.
If you have not pre-registered, you can still join us and register at-the-door...but you may need to make plans now. At least the weather won’t be a factor. Friday’s general admission registration opens at 4:00 PM and the show closes Friday at 9:00 PM. Saturday’s general admission registration opens at 7:30 AM and ends at 4:00 PM.
The State Fair’s address is: 581 State Fair Boulevard, Syracuse, NY. Very easy access off Interstate 690. Enter Gate #2. At the security station, state to guard that you are attending the maple show. Drive straight ahead past Fair buildings to the middle of the Fairgrounds. Follow signs and/or direction of parking attendants to parking for Maple Show / Horticulture Building.
[ MORE ]
Low bulk prices squeeze the middle sized producer
Mark Cannella, University of Vermont Extension | November 7, 2018
MONTPELIER, Vt.—Scale, production systems, and marketing have a major impact on how a maple business operates and performs.
These factors can impact profits, owner sanity, job creation, land use, and community footprint. “Right-sizing” gets used by business managers to determine the right scale a particular business can operate to accomplish its goals.
Most maple enterprises are unique and the concept of “right-sizing” recognizes that all aspects of an enterprise come to play. The number of taps is not the only factor in right sizing. Market outlets, prices received and management skills are all important.
As global maple production increases the markets, communities, and business owners are facing changes. Vermont, like many other US maple regions, has over a 150 year cultural heritage of syrup production ranging from subsistence production to commercial activity. A long maple history reminds us that there are many “right-sizes” for sugaring that satisfy the goals of the producers.
The declining bulk price over the past 3 years has forced many maple business owners that sell bulk syrup to question if they are or will be at the right size to stay viable.
Agricultural research has demonstrated how mid-scale farms can often get stuck in the middle of the push and pull of economics and consumer preferences (see “Food and the Mid-Level Farm” by Lyson, Stevenson, and Welsh).
The mid-scale maple business is likely to be a full time job for the owners for part of the year. These operators need to earn a livelihood from risky business activity [ MORE ]
The 2018 New York State Maple Producers Winter Conference
| Jan. 4, 2018
The 2018 New York State Maple Conference Friday evening program will feature two great options starting at 5:30.
One option is a show and tell on making maple cream on various kinds of equipment and comparing the results.
The second will feature Brad Gillian, president of Leader Evaporator, explaining the IMSI social media initiative and its power to enhance maple marketing. [ MORE ]
Innovators speak at Federation's annual general meeting
Submitted | Dec. 28, 2017
On November 22 and 23, the Federation held its annual general meeting in Lévis, on the south shore of Quebec City, where the IMSI meeting was also held this year.
This year during the conferences, the Federation wanted to underline the innovative aspects of our sector and to promote the entrepreneurship of the maple syrup producers. [ MORE ]
Late October storm pounded Vermont sugarmakers
Paul Post | Dec. 21, 2017
Bob White says some parts of his property looks like it was used for an Air Force bombing range.
A half-mile away, Dave Davis thought a locomotive was coming through his house, which shook violently from sustained high winds that reached up to 80 mph.
They're among the scores of northern Vermont maple producers still digging out, clearing away downed trees, and trying to assess damage from a severe storm that ripped through their area the night of Sunday, Oct. 29. [ MORE ]
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