Fun Maple Facts
Did you know ...
- Yes - Maple syrup is made in Minnesota. Minnesota has many licensed producers as well as numerous hobbyists.
- Pure Maple syrup is only made in certain parts of North America and nowhere else in the world! Minnesota is one of 19 states in the U.S. and 3 providences in Canada where maple syrup is made.
- Minnesota is the state with the most northerly latitude which produces maple syrup. Minnesota is also the most westerly state to make syrup.
- Maple syrup is made in the spring, when the temperatures gets below freezing at night and above freezing during the day.
- It takes about 40 gallons of sap (what comes from the tree) to make one gallon of maple syrup. The total solids in maple syrup are sixty-six percent [66%]. One gallon of maple syrup weighs 11 pounds.
- Nothing is added to the sap, only the water is evaporated away to make maple syrup.
- Once a tree is large enough to tap, it can be used year after year. Each tap can yield 10-12 gallons of sap during a season (about one quart of finished syrup).
- Minnesota's early governor in the mid-1800's was James J. Hill. He was one of the railroad barons that moved the railroads west as the country expanded. After his years in government he cooked maple syrup on the "North Shore".
