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I was at menards today. They had a big display of maple syrup. They were selling it for 9.99 a qt. With this weeks brown bag sale you wood get for 15 % off. That making it 8.50 a qt. This doesn't help us as farmers or maple syrup producer. with the syrup being ship into the USA.
At Walmart, they are asking $9.95 for both 250ml and 375 ml made by Crown and Springtree. All Syrup, Vanilla infused and Bourbon Barrel Aged is all the same price.
My sister in law had a quart she bought from Sams for like $7 around Christmas. I tried it, was quite surprised at how good it was. Usually it is a poor representation on maple.
It seems Crown said when they were asked about starting such a big operation, that they would not be competing with other producers, they would all be new specialty products developed by them. They did not develop regular maple syrup nor bourbon barrel aged maple syrup. Another lie to get approval.
There has been several big ones that have been started lately including a couple under way in Vermont that have said the same thing, only to compete with existing markets or dump on the bulk market.Quote:
Originally Posted by maple flats
My guess is that the prices will be going much lower. The prices must have been too high to fuel all of the expansion. People with big loans will go out of business and it will get back to normal.
I have made the same type comments in the past. The syrup in the Box stores does taste good. With a price of $9.99 or less for a quart this is only going to drive the overall price of maple down. As much as we all hate to see this happen it's inevitable. Maple is competing with other sweeteners. In order to have any chance you must be willing to lower the price. This is whats happening right now. There is boat loads of syrup on hand both in Canada and US. I see this years bulk price going down a bit due to the great seasons we have been getting.Quote:
Originally Posted by regor0
Spud
Unfortunately thats the way the while country is going with not just maple but most prducts. The biggest thing to remember is to sell yourself and your operation as family owned and knowing where your food id raised or made. Most people will support local when it comes down to quality products with a good story
I tend to agree with Kh7722, even with the super low prices from Canadian and US syrup, my prices have been the same for the last 7 years and my sales have climbed significantly every year. 2018 was my best ever in sales volume and I retail all of my syrup. I sold no bulk in 2018 and in 2017 I only sold one barrel of Very Dark. Now with my bourbon barrel aged maple syrup selling so well I use any Very Dark to make that if I have any. I made none in 2018, but had enough carried over from 2017 and 2016 to fill my needs until now. I'm putting up another barrel of bourbon barrel maple syrup today and for my first time I will be using Dark rather than Very Dark.
My website sales and my local sales enjoyed a big gain in 2018. My overall sales jumped 34% from 2017 and 2017 was by far my best year until 2018.
I agree with both of you. There will always be a retail market for those sugar makers that desire to go that route. It's not to hard to sell 400-500 gallons retail but it's very hard to sell 40,000-50,000 gallons. Unfortunately 95% or more of all syrup made probably is sold bulk to packers. This volume is what dictates the bulk price that is set. I am very happy to see producers sell some or all their syrup at retail price. I too am building up a retail base that could exceed 1000 gallons per year by June. It is very exciting to make more then the bulk price. I wish everyone the best of luck in their sales.
Spud
welcome to free trade
Folks,
Just my 2 cents.
I believe we will be raising our syrup prices this year. Its been many years since they were increased. We don't make a lot. Like some others in the maple industry I want to sell a memory, or a experience, not just syrup. I want folks to understand the name on the product label is my family name!
Good luck in your maple adventures! Have a great 2019 season!
Regards,
Chris
My sales haven't suffered any because of the lower prices in the supermarkets and wholesale outlets. My prices are about the same as other producers in my area and I'm not planning to raise or lower them anytime soon. People around here can buy a quart of syrup for around 12 or 13 dollars in a store while my quarts are 18 dollars. I get some people that say that they can buy it cheaper elsewhere but more often than not they hand me a twenty and say keep the change. They know who made it and they know that they are supporting a local business.
Russ,
Good summary!
Follow a sugarmaker around for a couple days and see the equipment, costs, care, and hours put into each quart. The $20 looks pretty darn good.
Regards,
Chris
Considering NAFTA came into effect in 1994 (and it's predecessor was from 1988) and Crown Maple is American, how does free trade has anything to do with a recent decline in syrup prices? I don't believe the more recent agreement (USMCA) treats maple syrup any differently than NAFTA did.Quote:
Originally Posted by fred
I don't think Fred was pointing his Finger North, After All he is Selling Equipment From a Canadian company. you could say that the relative cheapness of table sugar is directly related to Free Trade, and I think it would be easier to compete in the Market place if Table Sugar and Corn Syrup "which we All know is Highly Subsidized " was priced Higher. There probably wouldn't be enough syrup.Quote:
Originally Posted by ennismaple
thanks nate. yes this is America everyone can somewhat do what they want. make it so customers want you, we are on the high side of prices but we sell a ton of product. its all about backing your product
I am curious. Does anybody know how big of a grant Crown Maple got from the state of New York for their sugaring operation?
we know they closed there doors to the public
Care to elaborate?
But wait a minute .... I read a article where The State of New York gave a reason for the Grant as the fact that the operation, that being Crown Maple, was creating a "Tourist Destination" for the Hudson Valley.Quote:
Originally Posted by johnc
Nate, where is this information available? I would think that the politicians from all of the Maple Syrup producing states should be made aware that they are, in essence, taking away from there constituents. That's not right.Quote:
Originally Posted by n8hutch
I dont want to Hyjack this thread but do some Google Searches and you will find all kinds of info on how corn and sugar beets are subsidized in the United states, some articles claim up to 4 billion dollars a year just on sugar beets , white sugar is made from sugar beets and Cane sugar. There was actually a time when the railroads were running that Sugar Beets were grown here in Fryeburg Maine. Anyway theres alot to the story of how white Sugar is Subsidized and corn syrup and it is a very complex issue, but I still dont have to like it.Quote:
Originally Posted by minehart gap
And to clarify - we can also do what we want in Ontario, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. The Federation only covers syrup produced in Quebec. In the rest of the country we can add as many taps as we want and sell as much syrup to whomever we please. Not trying to pick a fight - just making it clear that you can't lump all Canadian syrup into the same basket. We have similar challenges competing with the syrup from Quebec but are obviously not affected by the effects of the exchange rate between $US vs $Cdn. Supply is one big cause of low prices in the states right now but the $0.25+ reduction in our dollar (compared to say 2011) is definitely a bigger factor.Quote:
Originally Posted by fred
At present, U.S. maple syrup bulk prices are dictated about 90% by the Canadian Exchange rate and about 10% by oversupply. That is for the wider market. In some areas there is more oversupply and thus lower prices, while in some regions syrup is considerably less abundant and the prices are a bit higher.
I am Marc from Deerfield NH. So now after starting out 2010 with 30 taps and gone over 800 plus as of today waiting to see what will happen. I went hole hog buying the land to try and get 1500 taps for a cash crop. I made an inquire on bulk price today. I get a price from B-----m .75 less pr. pound than I got 2014 when I got hooked. I got to feel my head.
I don't know where this info came from, their Facebook page still shows open house events?Quote:
Originally Posted by Sugar Bear