Mmmm Mmmm More Maple Syrup

Mmmmm ... maple syrup. There's nothing like the real thing.

And there are few things harder to procure.

Maple syrup comes from the sap of maple trees, mainly in the northern United States and Canada. With the typical maple-sugaring season lasting only four weeks, maple syrup has always been tough to harvest. In recent years, global warming has cut down the season by an additional 10 percent, raising costs and lowering production.

Now, a new type of spout has been invented that, according to a Newswise article, will "increase sap yields by 50 to 90 percent per tree."

The new spout's inventor, Progressive Plastics of Vermont, has designed the system with a special valve. The valve, a small ball inside the spout, blocks the flow of sap back into the tree. So long as the sap can't flow back, it can't plug the hole — and the sap continues to flow. The valve's inventors anticipate adding an extra two-and-a-half weeks to the maple-sugaring season.

So hang onto your plates of pancakes, and don't settle for Aunt Jemima. The real thing is still around — and will be for a long time to come.

Photo courtesy of stock.xchng