Elmira Maple Syrup Festival returns for 60th edition

The world’s largest one-day maple syrup festival is celebrating a milestone this year.

The 60th annual Elmira Maple Syrup Festival will be held on Apr. 6 from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.

A volunteer with the festival’s media relations team, Marjorie Wood, said it’s amazing their small town has been able to host the festival for so long.

“We are ready for the festival, we’re as ready as were going to be, the one thing we do require before the festival is more volunteers.”

Wood said it takes about 1,000 volunteers to run the one-day festival. So far, they are about 80 per cent of the way there. The festival added new volunteer options this year including the option for families to group up.

The festival’s Producer of the Year, Snyder Acres, said they are just about to wrap up for the season, which has been above average for them despite the constant changes in weather.

Typically, the best weather for maple syrup is when temperatures are freezing at night and rise back up to about 5 degrees Celsius during the day, according to the owner of Snyder Acres, Graham Snyder.

Snyder has about 170 acres of maple trees he has to tap with his family every year.

“The biggest thing we’re always nervous about is when we see our winters mild. Nervous how’s our trees going to react to this or is it cold enough for the trees to do their thing. So far, they’ve been able to do it,” said Snyder.

Last month when the weather hit double digits, Snyder worried it would end their season early, but a quick cold snap regenerated the maple trees, and they were able to tap early this year on Feb. 23.

“It’s not like it’s out of this world to tap early or anything its just when the season comes you got to recognize it and you go for it and get what you can.”

Snyder says the earliest date they ever tapped a tree was Feb. 4.

This year will be the second time the Snyder family have been the producers of the year for the Elmira festival.

“We’re looking like our season might be over within a week, but then we will be packing our bags and getting everything all lined up for the festival,” said Snyder.

Snyder and his family also took their products recently down to the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto where they competed with brands from Quebec and Vermont. They placed third in the amber division and the dark syrup division. Their very dark syrup also placed fifth in that division.

“It just proved that our win at the Elmira Maple Syrup Festival wasn’t a fluke,” joked Snyder.

The award-winning maple syrup from Snyder Acres will be available to taste during the annual pancake breakfast at the Elmira Maple Syrup Festival.