Syrup Is as Canadian as a Maple Leaf. That Could Change With Climate

"PAKENHAM, Ontario — By 9:30 a.m. the line for Fulton’s Pancake House and Sugarbush had snaked out the door and down the driveway toward the parking lot, like the day a new iPhone goes on sale.

But the restaurant, roughly 40 miles southwest of Ottawa, isn’t brand-new. It’s in its 50th year, and its star attraction, maple syrup, is much older. It was invented by Native Americans long before Europeans arrived in the Americas.

“Maple is a social crop,” said Shirley Fulton-Deugo, the owner. “It’s the first crop of the year and a sign that spring is here.” ...

But should the Triple Trouble generation have grandchildren one day, it’s not clear they’ll be able to take over the family business. A growing body of research suggests that warming temperatures and loss of snowpack linked to climate change may significantly shrink the range where it’s possible to make maple syrup. "

Kendra Pierre-Louis reports for the New York Times May 3, 2019.

 

Source: NY Times, 05/07/2019