Natural sap on campus will become maple syrup in dining halls thanks to a “sweet” partnership between the Office of Sustainability and Auxiliary Services.
The sustainability team is tapping some sugar maple trees on campus. During the winter season, maple tapping is at its peak, and sugar maples provide sap when tapped properly. This process will produce fresh maple syrup to be used in collaboration with the college’s dining halls.
Sarah Smelko, an intern for The Office Of Sustainability, describes the procedure for making the sap into syrup: “When you tap into the tree we drill in and we put a tap. It just comes dripping out, the sap. And then you boil it for a certain amount of time -- not too long but not too short so you get that perfect maple syrup natural consistency.”
Sustainability team members collected 40 gallons -- which is enough to make one gallon worth of maple syrup. Auxiliary Services will process the sap into syrup to make the Oswego dining experience that much sweeter.
Watch for updates on the syrup-making process in a future edition of Oswego Today.
-- Story and video by Brianna Linn of the Class of 2021