IMPORTANT NOTEThis web page is part of a web site that is no longer actively maintained by anybody at ANU SRES. It has been left on the web due to its apparent popularity (every time we've removed it, people have complained within 24 hours), but is presented AS IS - attempting to contact any individual named on the page is likely to fail, and the SRES webmaster doesn't want to hear about such failures or entertain any communication about updating of the page's contents. You have been warned. |
- INTRODUCTION
- ORIGIN & HISTORY
- TAPPING MAPLE SAP
- COLLECTING THE SAP
- BOILING THE SAP
- MAPLE SYRUP GRADES
- NUTRITIONAL VALUES & USES
- PRODUCTION & EXPORTS
- USEFUL LINKS
Source: Black Horse Farm
Maple syrup or 'sinzibuckwud' was first discovered by the North American Indians long before the arrival of Europeans. Sinzibuckwud is the Algonquin (North American tribe) word for maple syrup and means literally, 'drawn from wood'. Today maple syrup is the basis for a multi-million dollar industry in North America (Kort and Michiels, 1997). Commercial production occurs predominantly in South Eastern Canada in the Canadian provenances of Quebec, Southern Ontario and the Maritimes with limited production in North Eastern United States, such as the New England states and ten other states as far west as Wisconsin and Minnesota.
Maples represent the dominant species in the majority of Northern US and Southern Canadian forests. There are 13 species of maples native to North America, and while maples are harvested for their hard resilient wood, the species which are most valuable commercially for syrup production are the Sugar Maple - Acer saccharum Marsh., and its subspecies Black Maple - Acer nigrum (Encyclopedia Americana, 1987; ). Silver Maple - Acer saccharinum L., and Red Maple - Acer rubrum L., also have sap suitable for syrup production, but have lower sugar contents. The Mantibola Maple - Acer negundo L. var. interius (Britt.) Sarg., is also tapped, but not on a commercial scale (Kort and Michiels, 1997).
The Indians were the first to learn how to draw off maple sap and boil it to make sugar. Their methods of collection were described by the English chemist Robert Boyle as early as in 1663 (Encyclopedia Americana, 1987). Sebastian Rasles however, in 1724 noted "There is no lack of sugar in these forests. In spring the maple trees contain a fluid resembling that which canes of the islands contain. The women busy themselves into receiving it into vessels of bark, when it trickles from these trees, they boil it and obtain from it fairly good sugar". In early spring the Indians would use their tomahawks to cut V-shaped incisions into the trees, and then by inserting reeds or concave pieces of bark, channel the sap into buckets made of birch bark (Encyclopedia Americana, 1987). The sap was then concentrated by throwing hot rocks into the buckets. It was the Indians who first demonstrated to the French, how to tap the trunk of a tree, harvest and boil its sap in the early days of colonisation. This practice later became an integral part of colonial life.
"The maple is also a good wood...that tree has sap different from that of all others. There is made from it a beverage very pleasing to drink, of the colour of Spanish wine but not as good. It has a sweetness which renders it of very good taste. It does not inconvenience the stomach...this is the drink of the Indians, even of the French, who are fond of it" (Nicolas Denys, 1672).
Whilst harvesting and production of maple syrup has been refined since the days of colonialism, it persists as a tradition enjoyed by many North Americans. Production of maple syrup starts with the tapping of maple trees in early spring (Ensminger et al. 1994).
Maple sap is harvested from the 'sugar bush' - the stands of maple trees (Ensminger et al. 1994). Producers bore holes 5 to 8 cm deep, roughly 1 meter above the ground with a diameter of about 1cm and drive metal spouts (spiles) into the holes.
Sugar maples reach a tappable size at about 40 years of age under ideal conditions and a mature maple tree may have up to four or more taps at once (Ensminger et al., 1994). The dripping sap is directed into buckets or into a system of polyethylene tubes connected in and out of the trees, which transports the sap to the sugar houses. In the past accumulated sap was poured into a larger tank, and then hauled by sled or wagon to the sugar house. Regardless of the method of collection, a mature maple tree, carefully tapped will produce drop by drop about 3 litres of sap per day and could continue to provide sap for up to a century. During the maple sugaring season, which lasts about 6 weeks, from late March to early April, a tree will yield between 57 and 152 litres of sap, this will be concentrated to produce around 1 to 1.5 liters of pure maple syrup (Ensminger et al. 1994).
The physiology of sap flow in maple trees is a complex biological process which is not totally understood. It is however thought that the alternate freezing and thawing which occurs during early spring causes the sap or 'sugar water' within maples to develop strong positive pressure and as a consequence it starts flowing freely within the tree (Cortes and Sinclair, 1985). Maple sap is a product of photosynthesis which occurred during the previous growing season and acts as a natural antifreeze within the tree. Photosynthesis produces carbohydrates which are stored within the tree predominantly in the form of starch. During the spring thaw the accumulated starch is converted by enzymes into sucrose and dissolved within the sap. Water is the main component of maple sap accounting for roughly 97.5% of its total volume. Maple sap is however, also composed of sucrose and other sugars (levulose & dextrose), organic acids (malic acid), minerals (potassium and calcium), phenolic compounds, amino compounds, trace quantities of vitamins and maple taste precursors.
Although the techniques for collecting sap have remained the same for many centuries, the equipment used has seen many changes. Metal buckets have replaced wooden ones, metal tanks are now used for sap storage instead of hollowed out logs or wooden barrels. Today sap is collected either in bucket/bag systems or via a complex tubing system which is under vacuum pressure. Such methods of collection minimise harm to the trees and result in greater yields.
Sugar water or maple water collected from the tree is transformed into maple syrup in a sugar house or 'sugar shack'. This process is known as 'sugaring off'. Sap is boiled violently in a large pan called an evaporator. This was first patented on June 22nd 1858 by Blymer, Bates and Day. Roughly two thirds of the water content is evaporated during sugaring off, leaving a concentrated maple syrup. The distinct maple colour and flavour result from a chain of complex reactions during the sugaring off process. The final density of the sugar solution is determined via a 'hot test' using a specially calibrated hydrometer, that floats higher or lower depending on the amount of dissolved sugar in the water. Finally the hot syrup is passed through a set of filters to remove any impurities,'sugar sand', that could affect its flavour or colour and bottled while hot, to prevent mold or loss of colour or flavour. The entire syrup making process for one sap lot should be completed in one day (Maple, 1969). Different runs of syrup, generally have different tastes due to variation in soil types, sap-eating bacteria, sugar house plumbing, sap gathering and sterilising techniques and treeenzymes. An old fashioned treat enjoyed by those making maple syrup which heralded the end of the sugaring season (Ensminger et al., 1994), is called 'Jack wax' or 'maple taffy', whereby a taffy like confectionary was formed when hot syrup was poured over snow.
Maple syrup is classified into 4 distinct grades depending on its purity and clarity. (Christies Maple Farm).
During colonial times, maple syrup and its derivatives were abundant and an important element of the diet. Nowadays these products are a luxury and a treat, yet maple syrup remains a good source of three essential elements; calcium, iron and thiamin. Maple syrup represents a fat free source of energy enjoyed on pancakes, ice cream, french toast or even on baked beans.
167 calories 699 Kilojoules |
|
Maple syrup and maple sugar are amongst the oldest agricultural commodities produced in North America and yet represents tree farming at its best. The total world production of maple syrup is dominated by Quebec, with a production of 18,563 tonnes in 1998, easily dwarfing the United States' and other Canadian provenances total production of 4,378 and 2,055 tonnes respectively.
Total Canadian exports of maple syrup for 1998 reached 23,188.261 tonnes worth an estimated export value of $112,351,488. Australia is recognised as Canada's seventh largest export market, importing around 173.6 tonnes or 1.3 million dollars worth of maple syrup.
CONCLUSION
Maple syrup represents one of the oldest non-forest products which has been harvested from the forests, since the native American Indians discovered it many centuries ago. Its methods of collection and production have been passed onto many generations and cultures of people and in the process have evolved so that the present maple sugar industry is the basis for a multi-million dollar industry to North America. The nutritional benefits of maple syrup and its sweet taste should ensure that its production will continue for many centuries to come.
USEFUL LINKS
REFERENCES
The Encyclopedia Americana (1987). Vol.18, pp 290-291. Grolier Inc. Connecticut.
Ensminger, A.H., Ensminger, M.E., Konlande, J.E., Robson, J.R.K., (1994). Food and Nutrition Encyclopedia, 2nd edition. Vol 2(1-2), pp1374-1376. CRC PRESS.
Kort, J., and Michiels, P., (1997). Maple syrup from Manitoba maple (Acer negundo L.) on the Canadian prairies. The Forestry Chronicle. Vol. 73, No.3, pp 327-330.
Cortes, P.M., and Sinclair, T.R., (1985). The role of osmotic potential in spring sap flow of mature sugar maple trees (Acer saccharum Marsh). Journal of Experimental Botany. Vol. 36, No.162, pp12-24.
Maple; sugar, syrup, butter, taffy. (1969). Canada Dept. of Agriculture. Ottawa..
Nicolas Denys (1672). Histoire Naturelle des Peuples, des Animaux, des Arbres et Plates de l'Amerique Septentrionale.
Sebastian Rasles (1724). Lettres edifiantes et curieuses.
[ANU Forest Products][Non-WoodForest Products][Bushfoods] copyright 1999 TheAustralian National University Author: 3068689 Comment and Feedback Date Last Modified: 22 October 1999 URL:http://www.anu.edu.au/Forestry/wood/nwfp/maplesyrup/maple3_copy.html
