WALTHAM, Vt. (WCAX) – It was a sweet year for maple producers in Vermont, boiling down to about 3.1 million gallons of syrup, according to new USDA data. That’s almost a 20% increase over last year and just shy of the record set in 2022. Industry officials say it’s all it’s part of an upward trend in syrup in the nation’s number one maple state.
With 3,000 taps, Timothy Bouvier says he loves maple season. “You look forward to it all year and it’s nostalgia, you know, and it’s just doing it yourself,” said Bouvier, who runs Buck Mountain Maple Farm in Waltham.
The farm is celebrating 20 years and he says it was a good harvest this spring. However, he says he is constantly adapting to changing conditions, with the season starting sooner and ending earlier. “This year I’ll probably be more prepared for like January to really get going and try not to miss those runs. But, you know, once you start tapping, you’re committed to your Sugarhouse at that point,” Bouvier said.
Vermont Agriculture Secretary Anson Tebbetts says this year was an important bounce-back year statewide for maple production. “I think everyone is pleased with a year and we’ll call it a victory,” he said. “Mother Nature is a big player in this. But I have noticed over the last couple of years, sugarmakers are preparing earlier and earlier because there are some weather swings. They don’t want to miss that first run, so they’re tapping earlier.”
But adapting also can come with new costs, whether that’s new efficient equipment or weather. “Sugarmakers historically have always adapted. I think they’ll continue to adapt. And the big one that is before them now is the climate change and how they adapt to that to maintain their livelihood,” Tebbetts said.
But for now, sugarmakers like Bouvier are getting ready for the next season. It keeps me plenty busy,” he said.