32 Canadian Maple Syrup Facts That Will Make You Want It!

It's not that maple syrup is unique to Canada, but the practice of tapping trees for their sap is done more often in Canada than anywhere else.

Maple syrup was probably first made by Indigenous peoples about 2,000 years ago. Early French settlers learned the process from Indigenous people and began to make their own syrup about 200 years ago.

The process of making maple syrup has been done by Indigenous peoples in Canada long before the Europeans even came to North America. The French settlers learned the process from the Indigenous people and began to make their own syrup about two hundred years ago.

In 2014, Canada produced 71.1 million lb (32.2 million kg) of maple syrup. The image of a strong and independent Canada is often associated with the iconic image of hard-working syrup producers who collect sap from maple trees and boil it down for hours, making maple syrup from boiling sap.

Canada is the world's largest producer of maple syrup and accounts for about 75% of all global production.

Is Canadian maple syrup healthy? Of course, maple syrup is made from the sap of maple trees.

Canada produces approximately 80% of the world's maple syrup and consumes about 70% of it! There is 0.03 oz (7 gm) sugar content in each tablespoon, but the real health benefits come from its antioxidant content.

Maple syrup is packed to the brim with manganese, zinc, and potassium. This means that it can help fight osteoporosis, boost heart health by regulating blood pressure, and regenerating cells.

Facts About Canadian Maple Syrup

Maple syrup is an integral part of Canadian culture. Canada produces more than 80% of the world's pure maple syrup, and 22,000 Canadians are involved in making maple syrup!

• The average person consumes about 48 lb (21.77 kg) of maple syrup per year.
• Canada's first prime minister, Sir John A. MacDonald, was actually responsible for planting the maple trees that would lead to Canada's maple syrup industry!
• Maple syrup is a grade B food. This means it can't be sold until its quality has been assessed by a third party.
• During the summer months of sugaring, Canadian airwaves are often filled with advertisements from local sugar shacks, promising 'a taste of the sweetest shacks in Canada!'
• Although it's commonly referred to as 'syrup,' Canadian maple syrup is actually a sugar-water mixture that contains solids.
• Canada produces more than 600,000 gal (2271247.07 l)) of real maple syrup every year!
• Every year, Canadian's purchase over $200 million worth of maple syrup—enough to fill six Olympic-sized swimming pools!
• Canada is the world's largest producer and exporter of maple syrup, and Quebec alone produces nearly 70% of the world's supply.
• If you piled up all the maple leaves produced in Canada per year, it would be as high as two Saturn V rockets.

Facts About Maple Trees

The maple tree comes from the Aceraceae family, with over 100 types of maple trees.

• There are two main species of maple trees, sugar maple and red maple.
• Sugar maple leaves have five points and a smooth edge. They grow in zones two to seven, which is Canada and the United States.
• Red maple leaves, on the other hand, have three points and a serrated edge. They only grow in zones three to nine, which is also in Canada and the United States.
• It's maple syrup season when both types of leaves are half red and half green. A maple leaf is green and red in color.
• Over 100,000 gal (378541.18 l) of maple syrup is produced every year in Canada alone.
• Tapping a tree is when they drill a hole in the trunk and insert a spout into it. Maple trees can live up to 200 years, but most are cut down after they reach about 75 years old because their yield sharply declines.
• Even though black bears love maple syrup, they can't actually digest it.
• Maple trees are very sensitive to climate change! According to syrup makers, early warm spring or summer will result in poor sap production and low sugar content or concentrated sugar in the finished syrup product.

Facts About Canadian Maple Syrup Industry

Canada produces 80% of the world's supply of maple syrup and consumes about half of its total production!

• If all the maple syrup produced in one year were poured into a standard-sized oil drum, there would be 105668.82-132086.02 gal (4-5 million l) of syrup! Each year, 13 million l (343423.66 gal) of maple syrup is sold in Canada.
• There are about 20 different types of pure maple syrup that can be obtained from a real maple tree!
• Quebec produces nearly 75% of the world's supply of maple syrup!
• In Quebec,0.264 gal (1 l) of maple products has a value of around $33.00! Maple syrup is sold by volume and can range from very thin to very thick.
• There are different classifications that the syrup will fall under depending on how it looks and feels!
• If you were to stack all the maple syrup produced in Canada per year, it would reach a third of the way to the moon!
• Only about 5% of maple syrup is exported outside of North America.
• There are over 100,000 taps that are used to harvest maple syrup, and most of them are in Quebec!
• The world's longest continuously operated sugar shack is in Hemmingford, Quebec. You can find it right on the corner of Chemin Craig and Chemin du Nord. It has been in operation since 1930!

Did You Know...

Maple trees are not really trees; they are large plants that belong to the same family as lilies, tulips, and other monocotyledons.

• Besides sap, maple trees also produce seeds called samaras.
• The seeds, or 'helicopters', remain on the tree throughout winter until the following spring, when they float north on the wind currents before germinating when they land on warmer soil.
• It is very rare, but there are some known side effects of consuming too much maple syrup.
• Maple syrup is very sweet. It is also healthier than most other popular sugars because it contains manganese, zinc, potassium, and calcium.
• Generic pancake syrup may have high fructose corn in it, so it's not considered real maple syrup in Canada and is considered a cheap imitation in the United States.
• Pancake syrup is usually processed after it's made, whereas pure maple syrup has to be that way because there are no refineries near the maple trees.
• Maple syrup is typically produced in February, whereas pancake syrup is typically produced in April.