What is certified organic – isn it all really organic?
Yes mostly, but pure maple syrup is a wild crop harvested and processed with sophisticated methods and equipment. It is no longer made on a commercial scale by primitive methods of heating a pan of sap with a wood fire. Sugarhouse practices have evolved toward more energy efficient and labor saving processes, involving some sophisticated equipment. This equipment needs to cleaned and maintained in a manner that protects food safety and purity. And, in order to be certified organic, these processes are inspected and must be documented. Sugarbush practices have also evolved toward techniques that are less damaging to the trees and the soil. The picturesque image of teams of horses and sap buckets has been replaced by networks of plastic tubing. These networks are usually permanently installed and are suspended from the trees. Great care needs to be taken to avoid damaging the support trees. Organic inspections of the tubing network and of tapping practices, and of road maintenance occur
Yes mostly, but pure maple syrup is a ‘wild crop’ in the organic regulations, harvested and processed with sophisticated methods and equipment. It is no longer made on a commercial scale by primitive methods of heating a pan of sap with a wood fire. Sugarhouse practices have evolved toward more energy efficient and labor saving processes, involving some sophisticated equipment. This equipment needs to cleaned and maintained in a manner that protects food safety and purity. And, in order to be certified organic, these processes are inspected and must be documented. Sugarbush practices have also evolved toward techniques that are less damaging to the trees and the soil. The picturesque image of teams of horses and sap buckets has been replaced by networks of plastic tubing. These networks are usually permanently installed and are suspended from the trees. Great care needs to be taken to avoid damaging the support trees. A ‘wild crop’ must be harvested in a manner that ensures that such h
