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A Promising Alternative to Defoamers for Maple Production

Foam development in the evaporator is a phenomenon often encountered in maple production (Martin, 2011). As it passes through the evaporator, the boiling sap can begin to foam quickly, especially at a later stage of the production season. When excessive foaming occurs, the use of a foam control agent, commonly called “antifoaming agent” or “defoamer” in the maple syrup industry, sometimes becomes necessary to avoid problematic overnows (low productivity, loss of product, cleaning challenges, safety, etc.).

Ask Proctor: Why do I sometimes make light-colored syrup at the very end of the season?

The typical trend over a sugaring season is for syrup to start out light in color and get progressively darker, eventually ending up with very dark (and strong or off-tasting) syrup at the end. While there can be some temporary excursions up and down in syrup light transmittance, the natural progression is from light syrup early on to dark syrup near the finish. However, occasionally a syrup producer finds that right as the season is concluding the syrup color goes up dramatically and wonder why this happens.

A 20-Year Record of Syrup Production at UVM Proctor Maple Research Center from 2004-2023

The University of Vermont (UVM) Proctor Maple Research Center (PMRC) in Underhill, Vermont, has along history of research on sap production. Maple syrup has been made at PMRC since shortly after its founding in 1946, in part for research and in part for demonstration. Syrup production has always been an important component of the work of PMRC as it keeps the faculty and staff aware of the issues involved in sap collection and syrup production, it provides more of a “buy in” from producers when they understand that we face the same hurdles as they do each season, and the revenue gained from the sale of maple syrup helps to fund the operation.

Sweet Talk: All Things Maple

This ongoing podcast features interviews with researchers and educators about topics related to maple production and marketing.

Net-Zero Maple Syrup

An examination of why and how maple sugarmakers can make their operations carbon-neutral.

The Map of Maple: Off-Flavors

This tool is meant to identify off-flavors in syrup, and link the particular sensory experience to a specific defect and category that explains why the defect has occurred. Additionally, this tool serves as a user-friendly representation of the Vermont Agency of Agriculture Farms and Markets (VAAFM) “Maple Syrup Off-Flavors” manual.

The Map of Maple

The map of maple is a sensory tool, allowing you to explore all the wondrous possibilities of Vermont maple syrup. It offers some hints for tasting on your own.