The Quebec
marketing board for maple syrup has staved off court challenges and the
president is now inviting the dissidents to come into the fold.
The Supreme
Court has refused to hear two appeals from opponents of Quebec's maple syrup
rules.
Paul Rouillard,
acting director of the Federation of Quebec Maple Syrup Producers, says it will
now push to have the critics work within the system.
He says it is
democratic institution that represents 7,300 maple syrup companies who vote on
collective marketing decisions.
Angele Grenier,
a maple producer in Sainte-Clotilde-de-Beauce, says she has a "heavy
heart" after hearing the high court's decision.
She has accused
Quebec's maple syrup federation of being a "monopoly" that could
result in Quebec losing its 70 per cent market share to Ontario, New Brunswick
and the U.S.
It has, indeed,
lost market share and this year decided to try to stem the losses by increasing
the number of taps producers can place.
That and good
weather resulted in a bumper crop, but whether it was enough to regain market
share is yet to be determined.
