Statistical Overview of the Canadian Maple Industry 2020 Prepared by: Crops and Horticulture and Division Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada August 2021 © Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, represented by the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, (2021). Electronic version available at https://agriculture.canada.ca/en/canadas-agriculture-sectors/horticulture/horticulture-sector-reports ISSN: 2562-8763 AAFC no. : 13082E Catalogue no. : A71-40E-PDF Paru également en français sous le titre : Aperçu statistique de l’industrie de l’érable du Canada, 2020 ISSN: 2562-8771 AAC no. : 13082F Catalogue no. : A71-40F-PDF For more information, reach us at www.agr.gc.ca or call us toll-free at 1-855-773-0241. TABLE OF CONTENTS Overview ...........................................................................................................................................1 1. Production ....................................................................................................................................2 1.1. Maple syrup production by province ................................................................................... 3 1.2. Production of maple products – 15-year trend ..................................................................... 3 1.3. Number of maple farms by province ................................................................................... 4 1.4. Number of maple taps by province ...................................................................................... 4 1.5. Gross value of maple products by province ......................................................................... 5 2. Trade .............................................................................................................................................6 2.1. Exports ................................................................................................................................. 7 2.1.1. Maple products exports by province – by value ........................................................... 7 2.1.2. Maple products exports by province – by volume ........................................................ 7 2.1.3. Top 10 maple products export destinations – by value................................................. 8 2.1.4. Top 10 maple products export destinations – by volume ............................................. 8 3. Availability for consumption .........................................................................................................9 3.1. Maple products available for consumption .......................................................................... 9 4. World data................................................................................................................................... 10 4.1. World imports .................................................................................................................... 10 4.1.1. Top 10 importers of maple sugar and maple syrup – by value ................................... 10 4.1.2. Top 10 importers of maple sugar and maple syrup – by volume................................ 11 4.2. United States national statistics for maple syrup ............................................................... 12 4.2.1. United States maple syrup production by state ........................................................... 12 4.2.2. United States maple syrup production value by state ................................................. 12 5. Key resources ............................................................................................................................. 13 ii Overview The Canadian maple syrup industry accounts for approximately 75% of the world’s maple syrup production, with 92% of the Canadian production originating from Quebec, 4% from New Brunswick, 3% from Ontario, and 1% from Nova Scotia. The United States is the world’s second-largest producer, accounting for approximately 24% of global production, with 51% of United States production originating from Vermont, 18% from New York, and 13% from Maine. Due to favourable weather conditions, Canadian maple producers harvested 14.3 million gallons of maple syrup in 2020, surpassing the 2019 record of 13.2 million gallons produced by 8.3%. The increased production resulted in total sales of $558.5 million in 2020, up 7.9% from a year earlier. Maple products accounted for 6.4% of all Canadian horticulture farm cash receipts1 in 2020. Despite the increased production and sales in 2020, the COVID-19 shutdowns impacted the short maple syrup season across Canada in 2020. During the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, where measures such as physical distancing were implemented just as the maple syrup season was commencing, in-person visits to farms, sugar shacks and other activities that normally draw large crowds were not possible. In response to this reduction in ecotourism, some producers shifted focus towards online sales. Canada is the world’s largest exporter of maple products in terms of value and volume, with exports valued at $515 million in 2020, up 19.8% from 2019. In terms of value, Quebec accounted for 96.4% of Canadian maple product exports in 2020. Canadian maple products were exported to 68 different countries around the world in 2020; 59.1% of the exports were destined to the United States, 9.8% to Germany, 6.0% to the United Kingdom, 5.2% to Australia, and 4.8% to Japan, and 4.4% to France, with the other export destinations accounting for the remaining 10.8% of total exports. 1 Farm cash receipts measure gross revenue of farm businesses. They represent the cash income received from the sale of agricultural commodities. 1 1. Production2 As maple trees grow, they accumulate starch, which converts into sugar during the spring thaw and mixes with the water absorbed through tree roots to create maple sap, which generally flows between February and April each year. Producers use tubing systems, reverse osmosis and high-performance evaporators to collect sap and boil it down to create maple syrup. On average, it takes approximately 40 litres of sap to make one litre of maple syrup. Canadian maple syrup products range from traditional maple syrup to maple sugar, maple butter, maple candy as well as a full range of products containing maple syrup. The safety and quality of Canadian maple syrup is monitored by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), which ensures producers meet high federal standards. The CFIA is also responsible for the federal classification of Canadian maple syrup grades and colour descriptors, ensuring they align with standard international grading systems. There are two grade names for Canadian maple syrup: “Canada Grade A” (which is further graded into four colour classes - “Golden, Delicate Taste”, “Amber, Rich Taste”, “Dark, Robust Taste” and “Very Dark, Strong Taste” – that typically reach consumer and commercial markets) and “Canada Processing Grade”, which does not have colour classes and is often used in large-scale commercial applications. Quebec producers, who account for 92% of Canadian production, harvested 13.2 million gallons in 2020, up 9.8% from 2019. Higher yields, due to favourable spring weather and more taps, accounted for the higher production. While prices in other maple-producing provinces are determined by producers and as a result, can vary substantially, prices in Quebec are controlled by the Régie des marchés agricoles et agroalimentaires du Québec, which helps stabilize the price from year to year. The price in Quebec for 2020 remained at $38.55 per gallon and the total value of maple products was $509.2 million. Producers in New Brunswick - the second largest producer of maple products - accounted for $20.6 million worth of maple syrup, down by 11.1% from a year earlier, in part due to lower production (following a strong performance in 2019) and lower prices for bulk syrup. Production was down by 6.2% and producers received $2.05 less per gallon in 2020 compared with a year earlier, for an average of $36.78 per gallon. In 2020, production and overall value decreases were also noted in Ontario and Nova Scotia compared to strong 2019 production levels. In Ontario, production fell by 7.0% to 467,000 gallons in 2020, with a 2.9% decrease in value to $25.8 million, while the value per gallon increased to $55.16. In Nova Scotia, production decreased by 20.0% to 56,000 gallons, with a drop in value to $2.9 million (-25.9%), with the value per gallon also falling by 7.4% to $50.89. 2 Maple products production data for 2021 will be released by Statistics Canada in December 2021. 2 1.1. Maple syrup production1 by province (thousands of gallons2) 2020 % 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Share Nova Scotia 48 43 55 70 56 0% New Brunswick 528 551 361 598 561 4% Quebec 11,185 11,493 8,914 12,033 13,210 92% Ontario 398 425 465 502 467 3% Canada 12,160 12,512 9,796 13,204 14,294 100% Notes: 1. Maple products such as taffy, sugar and maple butter have been converted to syrup equivalent. 2. Conversion factors: 1 gallon of syrup equals 10.0 pounds of maple sugar. One gallon of syrup weighs 13.24760 pounds. One gallon of syrup equals 10.4 pounds of taffy. The conversion of maple taffy to syrup varies with the density of syrup that year. Source: Statistics Canada. Table 32-10-0354-01 Production and value of maple products (x 1,000) 1.2. Production of maple products – 15-year trend Production of maple products 16 14 12 10 Millions gallons ofMillions 8 6 4 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 3 1.3. Number of maple