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Not a good year for maple syrup

The numbers are in and as expected, it was not a good spring for maple syrup production. Total production was 1.91 million gallons down 32 percent from last year and the lowest production since 2007. More trees were tapped this year but yield per tap was 33 percent lower.

The warm weather in late February and early March pushed the sap to start running earlier than normal plus the season lasted on average 24 days compared to 32 days in 2011. In Wisconsin the season lasted just ten days. Sugar content was also lower in the sap this year, nationally it took an average of 48 gallons of sap to make a gallon of syrup, in Wisconsin it took 44 gallons compared to 38 gallons in 2011.

Vermont led the nation in syrup production with 750,000 gallons, down 34 percent from last year, Maine and New York produced 360,000 gallons each. Maine was the only state to show an increase in production compared to a year ago. Wisconsin produced 50,000 gallons of syrup compared to 155,000 gallons last year. That ties with 2005 as the lowest maple syrup production for the state on record. New Hampshire and Michigan had the lowest production since 2007.

2012 top-ten states by production in gallons: (2011 production)

1. Vermont 750,000 (1,140,000)
2. Maine 360,000 (360,000)
3. New York 360,000 (364,000)
4. Ohio 100,000 (125,000)
5. Pennsylvania 96,000 (128,000)
6. New Hampshire 76,000 (120,000)
7. Michigan 65,000 (123,000)
8. Wisconsin 50,000 (155,000)
9. Massachusetts 40,000 (62,000)
10. Connecticut 11,000 (17,000)

Read more from the National Ag Statistics Service New England Regional Field Office here: