With Less Than One Percent Of New York State's 300 Million Potentially Tappable Maple Trees Used Annually For Syrup, Schumer Unveils Bill To Encourage Private Farmers To Open Up Land For Tapping, Expanding Ny Ag Market And Bringing Huge Economic Boost To

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With Less Than One Percent Of New York State's 300 Million Potentially Tappable Maple Trees Used Annually For Syrup, Schumer Unveils Bill To Encourage Private Farmers To Open Up Land For Tapping, Expanding Ny Ag Market And Bringing Huge Economic Boost To Maple-Rich Upstate

New York State Currently has Nearly 200 Million More Maple Trees than Quebec, the World Leader in Maple Syrup Production; But with 73% of New York Trees on Private Land, NYS Lags Behind Other States in Productivity

Schumer Unveils Legislation to Establish Grant and Incentive Program for States to Create Programs Encouraging Private Farm Owners to Open Up Land to Maple Tapping—Delivering Huge Boost to NY Agriculture and Upstate Economy

Schumer: This Year's Top-Notch Season Proves Time is Now to Tap into NYS Syrup Potential

With New York's maple syrup industry tapping into less than one percent of the state's 289 million maple trees that have the potential to be tapped, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer today unveiled the Maple Tapping Access Program Act of 2008 (Maple TAP Act) - a bill to encourage private farm owners to open up their land for tapping by establishing a federal program to offer grants to states to develop programs that encourage landowners to allow maple tappers to access their property. Despite the staggering number of maple trees across the state, the U.S. imports four times as much maple syrup as it produces. New York's productivity is hindered by the fact that 73% of these trees are on privately-owned land. While New York has nearly 200 million more maple trees than Quebec, the world leader in syrup production, it taps nearly 40 million fewer trees than its northern neighbor.

To ensure New York State can use this profitable, untapped resource to its economic and agricultural advantage, Schumer today unveiled the Maple TAP Act which would direct the Secretary of Agriculture to establish a program under which states may apply for grants to encourage owners and operators of privately-held farm and ranch land with maple trees to voluntarily make such land available for maple tapping.

"We must be more aggressive and creative in unleashing New York's pent-up maple-producing potential," said Schumer. "Less than one percent utilization is just not good enough. Hundreds of millions of untapped trees are just sitting there, full of a lucrative natural resource that could propel New York to the top of the maple industry, as well providing a huge economic boost to maple-rich upstate," he added.

Across New York State, there are nearly 300 million maple trees with syrup-tapping potential, with local upstate farmers relying on it as one of the most lucrative pockets in the agriculture industry. However, despite the staggering number of trees across the state, less than one percent of them are currently used for maple tapping. In contrast, Canada currently produces 85% of the world's maple product, tapping into over one-third of their maple trees. New York has 1.5 million taps, while Quebec, the epicenter of the Canadian maple industry, has nearly 40 million.

This is due largely to the fact that 73% of all maple trees in New York State are located on privately-owned land. Because of this, despite having nearly 200 million more trees than Quebec, New York State still imports syrup from Canada because internal production is too low to meet the market demands.

However, despite their high production rates, Canadian tappers actually produced one third less maple syrup this past season than they did the year before, meaning there is a gap in the supply, and signaling a ripe time for New York to expand its market, Schumer noted.

Across Upstate New York there are nearly 300 million potential taps located on private land:

* In the Hudson Valley, there are an estimated 30 million potential taps
* In the Capital Region, there are an estimated 50 million potential taps
* In the North Country, there are an estimated 100 million potential taps
* In the Syracuse area, there are an estimated 50 million taps
* In the Rochester area, there are an estimated 30 million taps
* In the Buffalo area, there are an estimated 30 million taps

Today, to combat the staggering lack of utilization of the state's maple resources, Schumer unveiled legislation that would encourage private farm owners to open up their land for maple tapping by creating the opportunity for the State to offer them grants and incentives.

"This plan is the definition of a win-win," said Schumer. "The entire state economy benefits by building a thriving maple industry, and these private land owners get extra income and potentially lower property taxes, not to mention fresh maple syrup right outside their door."

Schumer's bill, the Maple TAP Act of 2008, would direct the Secretary of Agriculture to establish a program under which states may apply for grants to encourage owners and operators of privately-held farm and ranch land with maple trees to make voluntarily such land available for maple tapping.

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