EDEN, Vt. — There’s gold in these here hills.
Spurred by retail prices of $60 or more per gallon of maple syrup, nearly double from two years ago, maple-sugar producers are going all out, tapping more trees and investing in new sap lines and sugarhouses.
For commercial producers and backyard hobbyists alike, New England’s “sugarin’ season” could be a real moneymaker this year. The University of Vermont’s Proctor Research Center estimates 300,000 taps will be added.
Global demand for the sticky- sweet syrup outstripped supply last year, in part because lingering winter cold and heavy snow combined to slow sap flow and hinder get-out-the-sap efforts in Quebec, Maine and parts of Vermont. That, combined with the exhaustion of Canadian reserves, has helped drive up prices, experts said.
