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2024 Maple Season Recap : Record-Breaking Harvest
A record-breaking season for many maple syrup producers
The 2024 maple season will go down in history for the Canadian maple syrup industry. After a 2023 marked by challenging weather conditions and disappointing harvests, producers across the country experienced a return to normal, and even better. With a production of 19.9 million gallons of maple syrup in Canada, representing an impressive 91.3% increase, the 2024 season stands out as a turning point for the sector.
At the heart of this production, Québec, the world leader in maple production, alone generated 18 million gallons of syrup, reaching an average of 4.47 pounds per tap. This remarkable performance, supported by favorable weather and an increase in taps, helped replenish the Global Strategic Maple Syrup Reserve, whose critical levels had been a concern for the industry since 2023. For producers, this harvest brings a wave of optimism, despite ongoing financial pressure due to rising input costs, interest rates, and the financing of unsold inventory.
Other producing provinces also saw positive results: Ontario experienced nearly a 21% increase, New Brunswick doubled its production, and Nova Scotia also recorded significant growth. These figures are especially encouraging as global demand for maple products continues to rise, with exports up 8.8% over the first three quarters of the year.
While the industry celebrates this abundance, several structural challenges remain at the forefront: sustainable sugarbush management, public forest protection, modernization of sugaring equipment, and adaptation to climate change. In this context, high-performance maple equipment, efficient tubing systems, stainless steel syrup tanks, and well-calibrated evaporators are essential tools to ensure stable, high-quality production.
References:
The 2024 maple season in videos (English subtitled)
Personal overview: a new sugarbush lease across 2 sites, real-world challenges, and a renewed passion
On our end, the 2024 season was rich in learning — though not always for the reasons we had hoped. In the fall, we had the opportunity to lease a neighboring sugarbush with around 5,000 taps, following the passing of its previous owner. Since the lease was signed in January, we had very little time to take possession of the site and prepare properly.
Quickly the tubing system proved to be more than inadequate: no cleaning had been done, droplines with disposable spouts had become too short, and the collection system was poorly maintained. We chose to carry out the first harvest using the existing setup, while clearly identifying priorities for future seasons — in particular the complete replacement of the droplines and a deep cleaning planned for the fall.
The sap flowed abundantly with a remarkably high sugar concentration, and that held true for almost the entire season. Here's a Brix reading taken on February 27 in a test cup using a densimeter.
Maple Sap Collection Log Across Multiple Sites
And yet, it all started well: strong sap runs in March hinted at an exceptional season. But after a week-long freeze, things shifted dramatically: our personal maple trees kept flowing, while the 5,000 leased trees suddenly dried up. The diagnosis was clear — the state of the tubing network had compromised the yield.
We also tried a new way to monitor production: the maple sap was transported using a 100% stainless steel transport tank, a hygienic, durable, and easy-to-clean solution. To get a rough estimate of the volume harvested from each site, we created a shared photo album, in which a picture was taken every time the tank’s water level was checked. Always at the same spot (a flat, consistent point in the sugarbush), this visual reference allowed us to compare results, even without official graduations on the tank. We had initially planned to measure the Brix of each load for more precision, but that level of zeal didn’t survive the pace of the season. That said, these photos, though informal, proved useful for tracking overall yield trends.
In the end, our season was "okay", quite far from the boom many of our customers experienced. Still, it was an acceptable syrup yield in terms of quantity (especially considering others were producing like never before), and excellent in quality. Every challenge, however, brings its share of solutions. This new project has doubled the intensity of our maple fever, fueled our passion, and inspired a ton of ideas to optimize our operations. We are moving forward with concrete plans: upgrading equipment, improving the maple sap collection system, and investing in new maple production tools, always with the goal of producing high-quality syrup in a sustainable and efficient way.
In the end, our season was "okay", quite far from the boom many of our customers experienced. Still, it was an acceptable syrup yield in terms of quantity (especially considering others were producing like never before), and excellent in quality. Every challenge, however, brings its share of solutions. This new project has doubled the intensity of our maple fever, fueled our passion, and inspired a ton of ideas to optimize our operations. We are moving forward with concrete plans: upgrading equipment, improving the maple sap collection system, and investing in new maple production tools, always with the goal of producing high-quality syrup in a sustainable and efficient way.
As always, we’re happy to share our adventures on social media (Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram). Building on last year’s success, we once again showcased our “big log” feats (stick to small ones at home if you're not a pro).
Our distributor in Lanaudière and Mauricie, Alexis Clavet from Érablière C.G., took advantage of the fact that he had the exact same Extrem evaporator as us to craft the biggest log possible, custom-made for the unit — and while he was at it, he made a twin version to challenge us!
The saga sparked a lot of interest on social media and even earned TWO features in the news section of the quirky site Le Sac de Chips, under the “incredible” category.
Watch the Erabliere C.G.'s Big Log Challenge (English subtitled)
281, route 108 Est
Saint-Éphrem-de-Beauce
Québec, G0M 1R0, Canada
418 484-2013
Monday to friday
8h to 12h
13h to 17h
Neuville Division
1025 2e Rang
Neuville
Québec, G0M 1R0, Canada
418 876-0006
