In a bid to boost international sales, Quebec’s maple syrup producers are sweetening the pot by switching to a four-grade ranking system of their product.
The change is meant to ensure greater uniformity of products among syrup slingers in Canada and the United States to help penetrate overseas markets.
The old classifications were extra light, light, medium, amber, and dark.
Syrup will be classified now in four grades instead of five: golden (formerly extra light), amber (light and medium), dark (medium, amber, dark), and very dark (dark).
Msot of the syrup made in Quebec was classified as light - now amber - although the most popular syrup for foreigners is the extra light -- now called golden.
The hope is fewer choices will simplify the choice for foreign buyers.
“About four provinces in Canada and 10 states in the United States produce maple syrup and each province and state has their own classification system,” said Quebec Farmers’ Association spokesperson Paul Rouillard. “If you are an importing people, Japanese people, German people, you have 10 or 14 systems of classification. We discussed all these over 10 years and now we reached an agreement to have the same classification system for all the states and provinces in Canada.”
Rouillard said the new system would have no impact on the price of syrup in Quebec this year.
The Quebec maple syrup industry is responsible for 72 per cent of the world’s supply. It employs 10,000 people and brings in $340 million to the Quebec economy per year. Maple syrup sells for roughly $1,300 per barrel, about 26 times more than oil.
Syrup is so lucrative there have been several thefts in recent years. Four years ago, thieves stole $18-million worth of syrup near Quebec City.
Last summer, another $150,000 worth was stolen in Montreal.
