Amanda Swinhart and Patrick Whittle
Morgan, Va. (AP) – Making maple syrup in the whimsical spring weather in New England becomes an unpredictable business. Now, President Donald Trump’s ever-changing tariff policies add unease about industries that rely on multinational trade.
“We feel all sorts of confusion with our cross-border enterprise,” said Jim Judd, a fourth-generation Sugarer who owns Judd’s Wayeeses Farms in Morgan, Vermont. “It’s not clear enough to make maple syrup.”
Judd, who has been making Vermont signature products since the 1970s, says several countries have contributed to each container of sticky sweeteners. Stainless steel fixtures used can occur in China to connect sap lines and boil liquids into syrup. Packaging often comes from Italy. The majority of equipment is also sold in Canada, producing about four-fifths of Earth’s maple syrup, with nearly two-thirds of that being sold to US consumers.
That’s why whiplash this spring is extremely concerned with Judd and many other US producers in Vermont, New York, Maine and Wisconsin.
For 90 days earlier this month, Trump supported the strictest tariffs in most countries, raising taxes on Chinese imports to 145%, and worked long ago and backwards on tariffs on goods in Canada, Mexico and their countries.
Allison Hope, executive director of the Vermont Maple Sugar Manufacturers Association, said Trump’s latest position assumes that for now it means there are no tariffs on completed maple products, but the situation becomes even more intense when you consider that the packaging, equipment and materials needed could occur in China.
“It’s like New England weather. You wait five minutes and it might change,” Hope said. “Now, how Canada has made the equipment and got the materials is important. … It’s difficult for companies to run in a growth mentality when they don’t have a sense of how and how the industry will look in a year.”
Uncertainty is coming into an era of relative growth for US and Canadian syrup producers. Vermont has seen nearly 500% increase in production over the past 20 years as producers expanded, new businesses formed, and U.S. consumers sought local, natural alternatives to refined sugar, Hope said.
But the maple syrup powerhouse, a confused trade with Canada, could be devastating. Judd said he bought “countless hours and lots of money” in Canada over decades. Import taxes can significantly increase his costs, and he believes that he cannot raise prices, as syrup is essentially a luxurious good.
“We can’t do this without the help of Canada. We can’t buy what we need from another outlet because we’re in Canada,” Judd said. “We’ve crossed this border for the rest of our lives. The recent changes that are being imposed on people here are not sure if they are all necessary.”
Whitt reported from Scarborough, Maine.
Original issue: April 16, 2025, 1:21pm EDT
