Please feel free to point me to the "friendly and informative" posts in this thread...lol.
Whether or not comments regarding production methods are relevant is not the point. This forum reads like a 13 year old with ADHD. A post starts with a specific questions and by the third response, we're on a different topic...In this case of this thread the op's question is no longer even relevant. If you were the op, would you return to answer any questions or clarify your perspective?
The point of a discussion forum is to share ideas. If someone wants to discuss various production methods and their impacts on syrup flavor, why would they look in a thread called "Bulk Buyers Vermont"?
My point is if people want to discuss production methods and syrup flavor, then they are more likely to respond to a thread that at the least has a relevant title. And as Nate said, many people no longer participate here because of all the off-topic rants and random comments. This is a lightly moderated forum so we could all do ourselves a favor by self-moderating more effectively.