Cory Krieg making syrup .
start ,” says Krieg , “ so I took some classes that were offered by the Vermont Maple Sugar Makers Association .”
At the classes , Krieg learned about the way that Vermont ’ s maple syrup industry was structured . He then came to the realization that many small-scale maple sugaring operations were being put out of business due to the sheer demand and volume of the bulk market . “ The bulk market is not ideal for smaller maple farmers ,” notes Krieg . “ You need to have a sizable operation in order to establish profitable relationships with maple syrup packing companies . There are many massive farms that have already grown to occupy that market niche , so it ’ s hard to get your foot in the door and get a fair price for your syrup .”
Having already established connections with several local maple farmers , Krieg began to reach out to additional farmers in Windsor County and Orange County . After a series of open and honest conversations , Krieg learned that they shared a common sentiment of frustration in regards to the market dynamics of the maple syrup industry . He then came to the conclusion that the best way to help small-scale
maple farmers market and sell their products was to form a unified business collective . By joining forces and selling their syrup through a streamlined and efficient online platform , he and the other farmers would be able to directly reach consumers without having to negotiate with outside packing operations . “ It was a real ‘ lightbulb ’ moment ,” says Krieg . “ I understood that if we packed and shipped the syrup ourselves , we could provide our customers with small-batch syrup at a fair price without sacrificing any of the quality . We would also be able to fairly compensate farmers for their hard work and bring their products to a wider audience .”
Maple Farmers was officially incorporated in November 2020 . The collective currently consists of six central Vermont farms : Gilead Brook Farm , Hermit Woods Maple , The Howard Family Farm , Maple Flower Farm , Sunnybrook Farm , and White Rock Farm . Each farm uses traditional methods to make their syrup , and the farmers put a great deal of care and effort into every stage of the production process .
At Maple Flower Farm , the sugaring season begins at the beginning of the spring thaw every year in early March . At the onset of the sugaring season , Krieg ventures down to his neighbor ’ s forest with a mobile “ collection tank ” attached to the back of a tractor . Using a 5 / 16th-inch drill bit , he drills a small hole in the maple trees . Krieg then puts taps in the holes and affixes tubes to them which lead the sap into the collection tank . “ I don ’ t ever use vacuum pumps to collect the sap ,” says Krieg . “ I only put one tap per tree , because I want to ensure that the trees remain alive and healthy .”
After the sap is collected , Krieg brings the collection tank back to his property . He then runs a gravity-fed tube from the collection tank down to a “ feeder tank ” located in the top loft of his sugar house . From there , the sap in the feeder tank is fed into his evaporator , which is heated by wood that Krieg cuts and splits himself on his own property . “ Ideally , it ’ s best to use fresh sap that ’ s harvested the same day ,” notes Krieg .
When the sap is fed into the evaporator , it goes through an initial “ pre-heating ” stage . The top of the
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