Vermonters take their maple syrup very seriously. As far as they’re concerned, Aunt Jemima and her artificially-flavored corn-syrup cohorts can go and disappear for good. Or at least, at least quit misrepresenting themselves to clueless consumers.
Last week, they teamed up with other industry groups in New England and the upper Midwest and finally tattled on the fakey-fake fakers, sending a letter to the FDA complaining about the fact that products such as Quaker Oats Maple & Brown Sugar Instant Oatmeal and Maple-Bacon Pop Tarts don’t contain a lick of the good stuff. (The horror!)
The problem, according to chairman of the Maple Industry Committee of the Vermont Maple Sugar Makers Association Roger Brown, is that maple syrup is a premium ingredient. At $49 per gallon in Vermont, it’s an expensive sweetener—which is the reason so many companies imply its use by labeling their products with the big M when really they’re using artificial flavorings. Brown wants consumers to get what they’re looking for in a product—not a cheap replacement.
“My main beef is put syrup in it if you’re going to call it syrup,” Brown told the AP. “My secondary beef is if you’re going to call it a maple thing, put enough maple in it that it’s a maple product and that it’s not a corn syrup product that has some minuscule amount of syrup in it.”
The letter echoes Brown’s concerns. “This unchecked misbranding has an adverse impact on manufacturers of products containing real maple syrup, as it allows cheaper products not containing premium ingredients to compete with those actually containing maple syrup. Further, it deceives consumers into believing they are purchasing a premium product when, in fact, they have a product of substantially lower quality.” The writers cited nine examples of deceptive products, stating that there are many more out there on the market.
The FDA is currently reviewing the letter and will respond directly to the companies petitioning. Take that, fakers.
