Happy Maple Syrup Day!

Although it is an unofficial national holiday, National Maple Syrup Day is celebrated annually on December 17th across North America.

Maple syrup is the liquid food derived by concentrating and heat treating sap from the maple tree (Acer) or by solution in water of maple sugar made from such sap. The name of the food is ‘Maple sirup’. Alternatively, the word ‘sirup’ may be spelled ‘syrup’. (As defined in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Standards of Identity for Maple Sirup issued under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act)

The Northeastern U.S Indigenous Peoples are noted for inventing maple syrup. They created the method of tapping trees, know as Maple Tapping, along with the process of boiling the sap down into syrup. This technique is traditionally done by inserting a small spigot into the trunk of a maple tree and collecting the extract in a container. European settlers then adopted this practice. The United States produced most of the world’s maple syrup until the 1930s. While Canada is now the world's largest producer of maple syrup, Vermont leads production in the United States followed by New York and Maine.

According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Agricultural Statistical Service , "U.S. maple syrup production totaled 4.24 million gallons in 2019. In 2018, the U.S. maple syrup market was valued at $142 million with an average price per gallon of $33.80. Forecasts point to continued growth domestically and globally.” In 2015, the USDA Agricultural Service revised the U.S. Standards for Grades of Maple Sirup (Syrup) (80 FR 4853). This replaced the previous classification with new color and flavor descriptive headings, and revised the Grade A requirements.

Maple syrup production continues to be a topic of research. The University of New Hampshire is trying to find unique tasting, high value syrups by assessing the sap flows in hardwoods such as sycamore, birch and beech to name a few. This would diversify the industry as well as extend the Northeast sugaring season. Read more on the USDA blog . Cornell University is reassessing maple sap collection systems to find ways to increase sustainability. Read more about their research on the USDA website.

Additional Article Sources and Resources

• Maple Syrup USDA Climate Change Resource Center
• Vermont Maple Syrup America's Story, Library of Congress
• Maple Grades and Standards USDA
• Check out on the Library of Congress's website a transcribed letter from 1864 to President Abraham Lincoln sent with a gift of maple syrup.
• Before you travel with your treat, make sure you check out the Transportation Security Administration's (TSA) guidelines!