Originally Posted by
Parker
Woodchuck,,,i was talking about the smaller producer like most of us here...the big guys are not geared to retailing and establishing a market for 25k gal ,,,thats real tough work and very time consuming,,and really you have to be a very special person to pull that stunt off and maintain your shelf space.....(agine i have the highest respect for packers as they have worked very hard to get what they have,,read bruces book,,,the dude works nonstop and took and takes huge risks constantly risking all he has worked HARD for...a 15 million dollar line of credit does not come without real collateral)
Take the maple guild in island pond for example...with all their money,,with all the resourses availabel to them,,with going to food trade shows that are EXPENSIVE to attend how much of their crop have they been able to move? (Of course the way their syrup tastes might have something to do with it,,yes i have tasted it)...
My brother bought me a small nip bottel of syrup at the king arthour flour shop in vt...the syrup was fancy in color but literaly made me gag,,i suppose the packer thought it was a good way to geg rid of nasty late season shemegma...not a good market building idea...(dont know who packed it)
In reality its easier for a guy with 1000 gallons to sling his product retail than someone with 50 k taps.....imho.......and its eaiser to move product when it tastes good
That being said i do wish everyone the best of luck
It seems there is alot of yucky tasting syrup around which certainly won't grow the industry. We were at the Leader open house today and there was a bottle opened next to the coffee maker (apparently to put in coffee?) That syrup should not be on the table!!!!
Mark
Where we made syrup long before the trendies made it popular, now its just another commodity.
John Deere 4000, 830, and 420 crawler
1400 taps, 600 gph CDL RO, 4x12 wood-fired Leader, forced air and preheater. 400 gallon Sap-O-Matic vacuum gathering tank, PTO powered. 2500 gallon X truck tank, 17 bulk tanks.
No cage tanks allowed on this farm!