Need A Literal Barrel Of Maple Syrup? Head To A Costco In Canada
There are states in the U.S. that pride themselves on making maple syrup — including Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine — but when it comes to maple culture, nobody gets into it quite like the people just over the northern border in Quebec, Canada. This Canadian province produces as much as 91% of the world's maple syrup, and they take their maple industry very seriously. Case in point, if you stop in at a Costco in Quebec, you can buy a whole barrel of Canadian maple syrup for $2,500.
Americans might find it a challenge to come up with ways to use up even just a pint or two of the sweet stuff, but Canadians know that everything is a little better with a bit of maple sugar on top. It's a point of Canadian pride. And if you come home with an entire barrel of the stuff, you'd better have a plan for all that syrup, because there are only so many waffles one family can consume.
Maple barrels were spotted this fall
Everyone knows by now that Costco has amazing deals on bulk items like toilet paper, olive oil, and culinary spices. Sometimes, there are even containers that are absurdly giant, like hulking jugs of mayonnaise or food service-sized buckets of Nutella. The 55-gallon drum of maple syrup is really over the top and puts those items to shame, though. These gargantuan barrels first caused jaws to drop in October via a Reddit thread.
Like other large containers and bulk items sold at the warehouse juggernaut, most maple syrup barrels will likely end up at a restaurant or other commercial kitchen. "Bottled and resold, restaurants that have big breakfast customers, cafeteria settings, so many reasons, not for home use," said one commenter on Reddit.
But don't underestimate Canadians when it comes to consumption. After all, they put a maple leaf right on their national flag. The Toronto Sun reports that 89.7% of people living in Canada love maple syrup, and in Quebec, where the bulk of it is produced, people eat the sweet stuff on average of almost eight times per month — and that's just the self-reported numbers. As one Reddit user put it bluntly regarding the 55-gallon drums, "Enough for a week or two in a good Canadian household."
All of Costco's maple syrup is from Canada
If you're a Costco regular and also buy their Kirkland Signature maple syrup, you might have noticed that their smaller containers of maple syrup are labeled as "made in Canada." In fact, all of their maple syrup comes from a combination of producers including The Maple Treat and Citadelle, according to Money.ca. Both companies produce a lot of maple syrup, with The Maple Treat alone accounting for around a quarter of the world's syrup supply.
Since Costco has a hookup with the world's largest maple producers, it makes sense that they can offer actual barrels of the stuff at a discounted price. Their entire business model is predicated on making direct deals with high-quality suppliers so that they can offer low prices. However, that doesn't mean it's not shocking to see a whopping 55 gallons of syrup on sale, even if it is for a good price.
If you have a deep love of maple syrup (or a small restaurant, more likely), and you live in Quebec, all the liquid gold you could ever want is available right at Costco. Just make sure your membership is up to date. And if you live in America, you'll either have to settle for the smaller jugs of syrup available stateside for now or if you head north, be prepared to declare your barrel at customs when you try to cross the border.