The number of maple syrup producers wanting to convert their production to electricity is increasing rapidly, to the point that it takes two years to wait to obtain the required machinery.
In some cases, maple producers have to wait two years on waiting lists to obtain an electric evaporator, the machine used to boil maple sap to transform it into syrup. “In 5 years, the number of sugar bushes equipped with electricity has doubled, going from 4% in 2016 to 10% of producers in 2021. The increase in the price of gas and fuel oil has reinforced the trend,” explained Joël Vaudeville, Director of Communications for Quebec Maple Syrup Producers (PPAQ).
The numbers speak for themselves. “Today, considering the price of fuel oil, producing a barrel of maple syrup with fuel oil costs $100, while the same barrel costs $5 with the new electric evaporator that we have just put on the market,” said Vallier Chabot, President of CDL Maple Sugaring Equipment.
In addition to running on electricity, CDL’s Master-E evaporator, launched at the last agricultural show in Saint-Hyacinthe, also works automatically, a solution to the lack of personnel.
The demand is great for electric evaporators, confirmed Vincent Pépin, president of Dominion & Grimm. “Our sales are closed for 2023 and 2024, and we have reached the 2025 syrup season. We are taking a limited number of orders, many due to a limited workforce, because their manufacture requires very specialized expertise. .”
Since it is a patented technology in Quebec, it is not possible to bring these machines from abroad. “In addition, it’s very bulky to transport, they have to be reassembled on site and it takes technical support,” explained Vincent Pépin.
In addition to the exorbitant price of fuel oil, adopting more environmentally friendly practices could also motivate some producers to convert to electricity, estimates Joël Vaudeville of the PPAQ. “Even if we have set ourselves the objective of reducing our GHG emissions by 42% by 2030, compared to 2020, we must remember that sugar bushes already provide services at the ecological level, among other things by preserving biodiversity and by storing 774,000 metric tons of carbon per year, eleven times more carbon than the maple syrup production process.”
Even if many maple syrup producers want to convert to electricity, others will remain faithful to wood or oil-fired evaporators, nuance David Loubier, marketing director at Équipements Lapierre, a company that has chosen not to market evaporators. electrical.
“Not everyone wants to equip themselves with an electric evaporator. None of those on the market produce enough heat to develop the Maillard reaction, the caramelization process that gives the characteristic, rich and complex flavors sought in maple syrup. You should also know that the modern wood-fired evaporators that we have developed at Équipements Lapierre are carbon neutral, even carbon negative, with almost no polluting emissions, all this while making it possible to produce high quality maple syrup,” explained David Loubier.