Trouble In New England: Maple Syrup Industry Struggles W. Warming; Not Enough Sap, Not Enough Sugar
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Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania and Vermont produced 3.78 million gallons of syrup in 2016, according to a Northeast maple syrup production statistics service run by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Vermont is the clear leader, alone producing more than 47 percent of the country's maple syrup.
Hassan said the state's changing climate can have dramatic effects on the natural resources that "define us as a state and are critical to our economy, our environment, and our way of life in New Hampshire." "Unfortunately, we are already seeing the real impacts of climate change on our economy — including on our maple syrup and ski industries," she said, referring to warmer winters and a decline in snow cover.
The ideal temperatures for sap production are in the 20s at night and 30s and 40s during the day. When the climate is in the 50s and 60s during the day and the nights stay warm, sap runs not to the taps, but to the tops of the trees, causing the tree to bloom. That can lead to a cloudy and off-tasting product.
"The other day we had a nice 50-degree day which is kind of the new normal but still not normal," said Jeff Moore of Windswept farm. "One of the challenges we've had to start weighing is when do we actually tap because putting a tap into a tree is a wound, the trees naturally act to try to compartmentalize that wound and wall it off."
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http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/maple-syrup-producers-face-challenges-warming-world-45643029
= new reply since forum marked as read
through the roof
