VERONA, N.Y. — The 2018 New York State Maple Conference Friday evening program will feature two great options starting at 5:30. One option is a show and tell on making maple cream on various kinds of equipment and comparing the results. The second will feature Brad Gillian, president of Leader Evaporator, explaining the IMSI social media initiative and its power to enhance maple marketing. Right after these two concurrent sessions the VVS FFA will host the seventh annual maple conference auction. This auction gets bigger and better each year, come prepared to buy and sell. This year’s Maple Conference will be held in the same great location, the Vernon-Verona-Sherrill High School in Verona, New York on Friday evening January 5th and all day Saturday, January 6th.
Opportunities include having access to the large trade show with many exhibitors displaying plenty of specialized equipment for meeting maple producer needs. The topics on the agenda for Saturday include:
High Brix concentration and boiling,
Best Practices for using 3/16 tubing,
Managing your filter press,
Get Ready for Maple Weekend,
Tapping Below the Lateral Line – Should You or Shouldn’t You?,
What Influences Sap Yield and Sugar Content?,
Presentation for great marketing,
Basic RO Management and Care,
CDL Monitor System (woods, sugarhouse, pump station, remount woods),
CDL Intelligent R/O – this is a r/o in a remote location other than the sugarhouse,
How to use and calibrate measuring tools for sap and maple,
Maple Donuts, Maple Specialities, Maple Cream for the Beginner,
Making maple confections without spending a lot on equipment –methods of making by hand,
Sugarhouse Tours & Tastings, Tracking down and turning around conflicts for a maple business,
Connecting with the Cornell Food Venture Center: Food Safety and Regulatory Compliance for Value-Added Products,
Managing the little RO, Maple sap fermentation and distillation,
Maple Flavors,
RO Sanitation,
Organic Certification,
Small-scale management in your sugarbush: production and safety,
Assessing the Value of Remote Sensing Capabilities for Maple Producers: From Satellites to Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS),
Silvopasture to enhance maple producer revenues,
Managing invasive plants in your sugarbush,
Interesting Maple History Your Customers May Find Interesting,
Maple Cost of Production, Maple Business Planning, Marketing- What do you want to be when you grow up?
Alternative marketing strategies for value added maple products,
Grading Maple Syrup: Color, Density, Clarity and Flavor,
Maple Production for the Beginner,
Maple Marshmallow Treats,
NY Certified Maple Producer Training,
Forest tent caterpillar: managing and monitoring your sugarbush to minimize impacts,
Forest tent caterpillar,
Silvicultural techniques for regenerating sugar maple,
Specialty maple lumber field identification and production: Birdseye, taphole, spalted, curly, and ambrosia,
How to install underground tubing with success,
How to maintain quality sap in underground tubbing,
Growing Shiitake Mushrooms for Profit,
Correct considerations for sap transfer systems (Transfer pumps, extractors and pipe sizing),
Tips and techniques for producers considering maple tubing installation,
Basic Sap House Setups and Considerations for the Beginner
The conference is open to the general public, as well as maple producers, and is geared to all levels of sugar makers. Saturday’s trade show opens at 8:00 AM with workshops starting at 9:00AM. With these over 40 workshops available, you will have some hard choices.
Held at the Vernon-Verona-Sherrill (V.V.S.) High School, Verona, New York, the conference is sponsored by the V.V.S. FFA, New York State Maple Producers Association, the Cornell Maple Program and Cornell Cooperative Extension. The V.V.S. High School is located between Utica and Syracuse, New York on State Route 31 just two minutes from NYS Thruway Exit 33. For additional information contact V.V.S. FFA advisor Keith Schiebel atkschiebel@vvsschools.org. Registration forms are be available at the New York State Maple Producers Website: www.nysmaple.com or the Cornell Maple Program website: www.cornellmaple.com.
—Cornell Cooperative Extension
For more articles out of New York, click here.