Expansion possibilities for N.B. maple syrup production

A recent decision from the provincial government is expected to have a positive impact on sweet production in New Brunswick and is being applauded by the New Brunswick Maple Syrup Association.

In July, 5,000 new hectares of Crown land were granted for maple syrup production; however, at the same time, the government announced new protected areas, many of which were located next to existing sugar shacks, which limited expansion possibilities, according to the Association.

“We didn’t really understand why they announced these conservation areas,” said Frédérick Dion, president of the New Brunswick Maple Syrup Association. “You must understand that there’s many different types of conservation areas in the province and some of them, they allow to have some activities like [the] maple syrup industry, but in some other cases they are excluding every activity so it was not allowed.”

Dion says that the Association brought forward a number of examples and letters that asked the government for some flexibility and modifications to the original decision.

At the end of December, the Department of Natural Resources and Energy Development revised the criteria and boundaries of certain protected areas to allow maple syrup development to take place after all according to the Association.

Dion says that overall, the new hectares will give the maple syrup industry a boost across the province.

“We’re going to work with the forest that is already there,” he said. “We’re not going to cut some wood; in fact we’re going to preserve and protect these woods and it will allow us to also be able to get economic activity out of it and it will help the development of the region”

He noted New Brunswick is currently the third biggest producer in the world after Quebec and the state of Vermont.

“We’re proud of that and we’re bragging about it and we’re hoping to chase Vermont to get into second place,” he said. 

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