2019 NYS winter conference, now at the NYS fairgrounds

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Here is the schedule:
2019 New York State Maple Conference Session Descriptions
Friday Evening 5:30 to 6:30
Empire Room Maple Marketing Steve Roberts, Zoey Advertizing
Marketing the natural goodness of maple syrup can be a challenge to most rank and file maple producers. Steve understands marketing and more specifically the challenges that you have advertising your products. This educational and motivational address will inspire you and give specific marketing tactics that will profit your bottom line. Don't miss it! "The 7 Habits of successfully marketing maple"



Kitchen Demonstration Room Maple Sugar Candy Comparison Stephen Childs, Cornell Maple Program
This session will demonstrate maple sugar candy making using a variety of equipment and conditions and the resulting quality differences
Saturday Sessions
Session I 9:00-10:15
Empire Room High Brix concentration & boiling on a large scale, highlights from our Eden Sugarhouse, including problem solving 101 on a large scale Glenn Goodrich, Goodrich Maple Farms
RO technology continues to improve. Come learn how these improvements work and how you can work with them to get the most out of your RO. With the development of very high concentration RO,s evaporation adjustments are needed to avoid compromising maple syrup taste. Glenn will explain how making the changes have worked for him.

Broadway Bistro Room Microbes and Maple – More than Meets the Eye Tim Perkins, UVM
Learn all about the stuff in the sap that you cannot see but can affect your maple product
Martha Eddy Room RO operation and how to maintain performance Jean Francois Goulet , Lapierre
RO technology continues to improve. Come learn how these improvements work and how you can work with them to get the most out of your RO.
Kitchen Demonstration Room Using Foil Packs for Maple Stephen Childs, Cornell Maple Program
This session will demonstrate a small foil pack filler and options available for selling maple syrup in small single serve containers
Theater Grading Maple Syrup: Color, Density, Clarity and Flavor Les Ober, Ohio State
Grading maple syrup continues to challenge many maple producers. This session will take a look at the expectations of the maple syrup grading regulations and the best ways maple producers have available to properly finish at the right density, determine the color, select acceptable flavor and filter for proper clarity.
Summerset Room The Bird-Friendly Maple Project: Working together to integrate the maple industry with global bird conservation Suzanne Treyger, Forest Program Manager, Audubon NY
While maple syrup can look and taste the same, it can come from forests that are managed in dramatically different ways. Biologically and structurally diverse sugarbushes can provide quality habitat for forest birds because they offer great places to forage, find cover, nest and raise young. This presentation will provide a detailed overview of Audubon Vermont’s Bird-Friendly Maple Project, including the birds that benefit from diverse sugarbush habitat, as well as provide a sneak peek into the expansion of the program into New York State.
Seminar Room Hort Building Lantern Fly What to Expect Mark C. Whitmore, Forest Entomologist, Cornell
The Lantern Fly is an insect pest that has been known to attach maple trees in other areas of the country and world. It has recently been found in several area of New York and Pennsylvania. Learn how and when to look for this pest along with what controls are an option in the sugarbush
Café Hort Building The 1 Hour Maple Business Plan Mark Cannella, University of Vermont
Business planning comes in all forms and it is an ongoing process. This session is designed to adapt the components of a traditional business plan into fast and easy format so that participants can develop a plan in 1 hour. Short teaching segments on your business vision, production set up, investments, marketing and implementation steps will be accompanied by a one page business planning sheet and time to work on it. Participants will leave the session with an outline of a basic strategic plan, budget targets and identify the business goals that are important to their success.

Social Justice History Room Organic certification Lauren Sandstrom, Baystate Organic Certifiers Baystate Organic Certifiers will offer a presentation on how to navigate the certification process from start to finish and on the Organic Standards and the rules that apply to organic maple production, allowing for ample time for a Q&A session for any questions on organic maple production and organic certification.
Near the Trees in the Hort Building Productive Chainsaw Use Mike Burns, NYCAMH
The chainsaw can be a very productive tool for use in the sugarbush. Keeping the operator safe is an important part of keeping the chainsaw productive. Proper saw and chain maintenance, use of personal protective equipment and safe handling practices will be presented in the session

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More:
Break 10:15-10:45
Session II 10:45-12:00
Empire Room Evaporation, what is in the bottle (and even the barrel) must be perfect Joel Boutin, Quebec
When it comes time to pack the syrup we must take precautions to ensure that the product is perfect. Density, filtration and taste, it's a big goal
Broadway Bistro Room Spout and Tubing Sanitation for 5/16” and 3/16” Tubing Systems Tim Perkins, UVM
Learn what the latest research shows to be the most effective in cleaning and keeping spouts and tubing clean
Martha Eddy Room CDL Monitor System , (woods, sugarhouse, pump station, remount woods ) Kory Woods, CDL
Technologies in remote monitoring various aspects of your maple operation have improved significantly in recent years. What you can monitor and what you can control remotely will be discussed and demonstrated.
Kitchen Demonstration Room What's New? Infused syrups, Spiced Sugars, attractive packaging, private label Jugs & more Ruth and Glen Goodrich, Goodrich Maple Farm
Ruth Goodrich will demonstrate some of their special maple value added products, attractive packaging ideas, infused syrups and other new maple value added options

Theater Maple Production for the Beginner Les Ober, Ohio State
This session will take the novice sugar maker through all phases necessary to complete their first or tenth season of syrup production. The basics needed for selection of tappable trees, actual tapping methods to include both bucket and rudimentary tubing systems; collection, storage and primary filtering of sap; evaporator type, size and operation; preparation of finished syrup, storage, labeling and market possibilities.
Summerset Room RO operation and how to maintain Jeff Faulks, Hydride Regional Manager This presentation will briefly overview the functionality of membranes and how they work. It will then transition into the proper ways of removing both Organic and Inorganic fouling layers that deposit on membrane surfaces resulting in a reduction of performance. This presentation will explain the fundamentals of proper cleaning and sanitizing to ensure a high quality product while protecting the equipment to maximize membrane life.
Seminar Room Hort Building Update on Forest Tent Caterpillar and Emerald Ash Borer Mark C. Whitmore, Forest Entomologist, Cornell
Cornell Forest Entomologist Mark Whitmore will provide an update on the 2018 activity of the Forest Tent Caterpillar and Emerald Ash Borer around New York State
Café Hort Building Walk-in Business Clinic Mark Cannella, University of Vermont
UVM Extension has developed several easy business calculators that managers can use for planning. Step into the clinic room anytime from 10:45 through lunch time for 10 minutes to try them. The clinic room will have laptop computers available and a business educator can assist you with the calculators, printing out your results and any other business questions. These calculators will be available: 1) Multi-year Production Yield: calculate your 1-5 year average; 2) Production Forecast ; 3) Gross Sales and Pricing : this calculator will total up all your sales prices for different products (bulk, retail package sizes, etc..) so you can develop a sales projection for the coming crop year; 4) Cost Analysis with Break-Even Analysis.

Social Justice History Room Maple in the City: Developing Maple Education for Syracuse Youth "Kristina A. Ferrare, Forestry Program Specialist, Onondaga CCE, Steve Harris, Syracuse City Arborist, and Chris Abbott, After School Programs Coordinator
The wonder of maple season is something every kid should be able to enjoy. The city of Syracuse has ample maple trees in their parks and a strong collaboration between their local CCE and the Department of Parks, Recreation and Youth Programs. So it seemed logical to build a mini-maple program into an existing relationship. Maple in the City combines classroom instruction with winter outdoor experiences, including maple tapping, hanging buckets and collecting sap – even a tubing system - to give students a taste of the good stuff. An annual maple day celebration brings parents out to the parks as well. If you are in a village, town center or city, maple education is still a possibility and an essential piece of agriculture literacy and the urban agriculture movement.
Maple Center in the Hort Building Maple Marketing at the New York State Fair Maple Center Staff
Come check out the Maple Center of the New York State Maple Producers Association. During the state fair this center generates well over $200,000 in sales. See how sales are displayed, handled and recorded. See how many products are made on site such as maple popcorn, maple slushes, maple ice cream and maple cotton. Other products that have been successful include maple cheese cake, maple sausage, maple milk and maple sugar shapes. See how a variety of products are sampled.
At the Trees in the Hort Building Tubing Installation Tips and Guidelines Aaron Wightman, Cornell Maple Program

Learn tubing installation tips and guidelines on a simulated sugar bush. Geared toward producers new to installing tubing or who want to brush up on installation procedures and guidelines.
Third Floor of the Home Arts Building Maple Queen and Princess Program Maple Queen and Princess Program
This session opens to the public at 10:30 and continues until the program is completed. Young people who would like to help promote the maple industry as Maple Queen, Princess, King or Prince will be judged on private interview skills, public speaking as they present short speeches on their choice of topic related to maple, poise and confidence and answering of an on stage question. Winners will be named for each county represented and each queen and princess winner will have the opportunity to represent her county at the New York State Maple queen Pageant in Croghan.

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More:
Lunch 12:00-1:15
Session III 1:15-2:30
Empire Room High level of vacuum; good, but at what price Joel Boutin, Quebec
We have a pressure from our industry to increase the vacuum level. This is not easy and not desirable in all cases.
Broadway Bistro Room Marketing Maple Products Dottie and Lyle Merle, Merle Maple
Lyle and Dottie have been successfully marketing a large variety of maple products for many years. Hear what has worked and some of what has not worked in their marketing efforts. Good packaging, great displays, attracting a crowd and great help all work together for excellent sales.
Martha Eddy Room RO Management Dennis Cote, Memprotec
This session will look at all aspects of RO management and maintenance for excellent and long term performance
Kitchen Demonstration Room Maple Sugar and Maple Donuts Scott StMary, Cedar Brook Farm Maple Confections
This session will demonstrate granulated maple sugar making and how best to use that sugar in the production of maple donuts made in an onsite donut machine.
Theater Factors affecting the flow and sweetness of maple sap Adam Wild, Cornell Maple Program
This session will look at a variety of factors known to influence the flow and sweetness of maple sap. Recent research into the effect of nutrient levels and fertilization will be presented
Summerset Room Making Beer, Wine and Other Fermented Beverages with Maple Keith Otto, Cornell Maple Program, Uihlein Maple Research Forest
Fermenting maple sap, or sap concentrate or maple syrup into a variety of fermented beverages offers an extraordinary opportunity for further growth in the maple industry. This session will cover some of the most recent developments and research in fermented maple products.
Seminar Room Hort Building Tips for a Successful Timber Harvest in Your Sugarbush (… Including How to Market Tap Trees) Brett Chedzoy, CCE Schuyler County, Peter Smallidge, Cornell Extension Forester
The judicious use of well-planned and executed timber harvests can maintain the productivity of your sugarbush and preemptively salvage high-risk trees like Ash. This session will focus on special considerations when logging in a sugarbush, including value-added markets for tap trees.
Café Hort Building NY Grown and Certified Training Stephen Childs, Cornell Maple Program
This session will walk through the process of becoming a NYS Certified Maple Producer. The first requirement involves Agricultural Environmental Management (AEM). This is a voluntary, incentive-based program that helps farmers make common-sense, cost-effective and science-based decisions to help meet business objectives while protecting and conserving the State’s natural resources. Farmers work with local soil and water districts to develop comprehensive farm plans. For this certification Tier 1 and Tier 2 are required. Second we will understand the requirements for food safety best management practices. Third the training session requirements.

Social Justice History Room RO for the small producer or hobbyist Carl Nylen, The RO Bucket
This session will demonstrate using small ROs for smaller maple producers and hobbyist
Maple Center in the Hort Building Maple Marketing at the New York State Fair Maple Center Staff
Come check out the Maple Center of the New York State Maple Producers Association. During the state fair this center generates well over $200,000 in sales. See how sales are displayed, handled and recorded. See how many products are made on site such as maple popcorn, maple slushes, maple ice cream and maple cotton. Other products that have been successful include maple cheese cake, maple sausage, maple milk and maple sugar shapes. See how a variety of products are sampled.

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The last:
Break 2:30-3:00
Session IV 3:00-4:00
Empire Room Taking Marketing to the Next Level Brad Gillilan, Leader Evaporator
This session will take a look at new ways of expanding your marketing foot print through traditional means as well as the more modern use of the internet and social media. Learn how to effectively display maple products in your sugarhouse. Seasonal displays, multi-product showcasing, and store layout will be discussed as well as how to get your customers to buy your most profitable items. Low cost solutions will be emphasized that can help make you more successful in retailing to the public. An industry wide social media marketing initiative sponsored by the IMSI and endorsed by The NAMSC will be highlighted. Learn how producers, processors, and maple syrup enthusiasts can work together to spread common messaging across social media to promote the use of pure maple products.


Broadway Bistro Room Tips for Maple Weekend Participants Bridget Smith, Smith's Maple Farm and Steven Rogers, Bear Creek Farm, Maple Weekend Coordinators
This session will focus on getting the most out of your maple weekend. Attracting a crowd, educating the public, keeping the customers you attract.

Martha Eddy Room Vacuum principles and vacuum pump applied to maple operations Carl Lapierre, Lapierre
Vacuum can be a confusing technology. How to correctly size the vacuum pump for your particular application, how to assure the vacuum reaches the maple tree, using vacuum to maximize sap yield will be covered in the session
Kitchen Demonstration Room Making Maple Fudge Jake Moser, Moser Maple
Maple fudge seems to be growing in popularity as a maple value added product. Jake will demonstrate making maple fudge and the finer points of making it great.

Theater Time of tapping research Keith Otto, Cornell Maple Program, Uihlein Maple Research Forest
This session will report on a time of tapping study conducted during the 2018 maple sap season. Three different tapping dates were compared, one in January, one in February and one in March to see how the

Summerset Room Filtering Maple Sap and Maple Syrup Aaron Wightman, Cornell Maple Program
Proper filtration of both sap and syrup is essential in producing a pure, high quality maple product that is suitable for sale and appealing to consumers. This session will provide practical guidance for sap and syrup filtration including pros and cons for specific methods. It will also touch on the topics of grading and sap chemistry as they relate to processing and finished product quality.
Seminar Room Hort Building Establishing Tomorrow’s Tap Trees in Today’s Sugarbush Peter Smallidge, Cornell Extension Forester
The perpetual production of a sugarbush requires periodically adding new trees to replace those lost to old age, storm damage or disease. Deer browsing and dense competing vegetation in the understory are just a couple of the challenges to growing maple seedlings in to future tap trees. This session will show proven and practical silvicultural methods for renovating maple in sugarbushes.
Café Hort Building Options for lifting sap in the sugarbush David Campbell, Mapleland Farms; Stephen Childs, Cornell Maple Program
Sap ladders, reverse flow systems, sap lifters, 3/16” tubing, vacuum driven pumps; what sap lift solution is best for your problem?
Social Justice History Room Keeping “Family” in the business… Chris Tauzel, NY Agriculture Mediation Program
“Where do you see conflict in your business?” “What pushes your HOT buttons?” “Where are you stuck?” For 3 years at the Maple Conference, the most common answer has been “Family issues”. Since 2002, over 7,500 producers, farm families and agribusinesses, have used the NYS Agricultural Mediation Program (NYSAMP) as a free/ low cost method to solve problems, create plans, develop agreements and get their families and businesses moving forward. Come join us for this informal, interactive workshop that will introduce specific skills you can take with you and also ways to use tools like mediation and conflict coaching.
Closing 4:00 PM

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Sorry for making it so many posts, but apparently even moderators have to adhere to size maximums of a post.

[DrTimPerkins]

Press Release received yesterday. Passing on for those who want info.

The 2019 New York State Maple Producers Winter Conference Will Be The Greatest Yet
A producer-focused 2019 NYS Maple Conference with practical and hands-on sessions for maple farms to enhance existing and expanding operations.
January 4 and 5, 2019

The 2019 NYS Maple Conference will be the greatest yet because of a great new location. After 19 years in Verona, the New York Maple Conference is moving just down the Thruway to the New York State Fair in Syracuse. This location offers all of the trade show in one very large room, larger meeting rooms so everyone who wants in can fit. It will also offer larger parking space and access to the Fair Maple Center for those who have not had a chance to see how everything works at this, one of the world’s most successful maple marketing locations. This year’s event is scheduled for January 4th and 5th, 2019 and remains the first of the new year for maple producers throughout North America. Friday evening will feature two educational sessions starting at 5:30. One will be an open discussion and demonstration of the various ways to make maple sugar candy, from low investment to more complicated equipment. The second session will feature Steve Zoey of Zoey Advertising talking about how marketing the natural goodness of maple syrup can be a challenge to most rank and file maple producers. Steve understands marketing and more specifically the challenges that you have advertising your products. This educational and motivational address will inspire you and give specific marketing tactics that will profit your bottom line. Don't miss it! "The 7 Habits of successfully marketing maple". The annual maple equipment auction will follow these sessions. Saturday will feature over 40 sessions on all aspects of maple production, see session descriptions and registration information at cornellmaple.com. The day-and-a-half event will be hosted by the New York Maple Producers Association in conjunction with the New York FFA Alumni Association and Cornell Maple Program. The conference will follow a similar format as previous years.

Information on auction items will be made available via email request after December 28th. Auction service fee will be 15% of auction price paid by seller. Auction participants MUST be registered for Friday night’s conference in order to receive a bid number and participate in the auction. Register for bid numbers onsite and payment of items must be cash or check.

Conference registration opens at 4:30 PM Friday night; trade show begins at 4:30 PM with maple workshops scheduled between 5:30 PM and 7:00 PM. A live maple equipment auction will be held Friday night at 6:00 PM. Saturday’s doors open at 7:30 AM with workshops beginning at 9:00 AM. Overnight accommodations are available at Clarion Inn, 100 Farrell Road, just 5 minutes from the Fairgrounds. Cost of the rooms are $65.99 per night. Phone number is 315-457-8700. Request accommodations under “maple block”. For information, contact Maple Conference coordinator Keith Schiebel at kschiebel@tds.net The full education agenda be available at the New York State Maple Producers Website: www.nysmaple.com or the Cornell Maple Program website: www.cornellmaple.com.