Syrup spoiler: Quebec maple producers investigating “bad apple” since January
Quebec’s maple syrup producers say they’ve been investigating a fraudulent company since January 2026, and are now pushing to expand investigations to prevent any fake syrup from reaching the market again.
A Radio-Canada report from its investigative program Enquête revealed last week one major syrup producer, Steve Bourdeau, was cutting half his product with cane sugar. According to the Québec Maple Syrup Producers federation, Bourdeau’s company was already on the federation’s radar for failing to comply with collective marketing rules, months before Enquête published its report.
“We went to check the retail locations of that producer because he was known to our organization and, indeed, that maple syrup had been adulterated,” said Joël Vaudeville, a spokesperson for the federation, explaining he couldn’t go into further detail about Bordeau’s marketing violations for legal reasons.
To Vaudeville’s knowledge, this instance of bogus maple syrup is a first of its kind in Quebec. He said the Québec Maple Syrup Producers federation has done rigorous annual syrup inspections for more than a decade, both through responding to complaints and by making random purchases at grocery stores across Quebec to test for adulterated syrup.
“There are no other cases similar to Mr. Bourdeau’s. And I would add that, in over 20 years of working with the classification process, we have never seen anything like this adulterated maple syrup — and we’ve been conducting investigations for over 10 years,” he said.
“We’ve never once come across genuinely adulterated maple syrup. It’s shameful that a maple syrup producer has cheated the system in this way,” said Vaudeville, describing the company as a “rotten apple” unique within the industry.
The federation began its investigation after the Radio-Canada journalist approached them to learn more about Quebec’s maple syrup control system for their own investigation, and tipped them off one maple syrup brand didn’t taste authentic. Vaudeville said the journalist kept the identity of the producer anonymous, but the allegation of adulterated syrup “set off alarm bells for us.”
On Feb. 20, the Quebec Maple Syrup Producers federation filed a complaint with the Ministère de l’Agriculture, des Pêcheries et de l’Alimentation, the governing body Vaudeville says has the regulatory power to force the fraudulent product off the shelves and take legal action against a faulty producer.
The Gazette reached out to MAPAQ, but they declined to comment, saying “the matter may be subject to legal proceedings.”
In light of this maple syrup scandal, Vaudeville said the federation is looking into whether they can expand their retail investigations, but the responsibility primarily lies with MAPAQ, which has the authority to bar the sale of a product.
“I can’t speak for how other stakeholders will act, but we expect retailers to take the maple syrup they buy more seriously. When people show up with maple syrup at prices that are unreasonably low — prices that defy all competition — that should raise a red flag for retailers,” Vaudeville said.
Cases like this are particularly rare in Quebec, Vaudeville explained, because the province has a syrup grading process that is one-of-a-kind internationally.
“It doesn’t exist in Ontario. It doesn’t exist in New Brunswick. It doesn’t exist in the United States. We are very proud of what we do. We make good maple syrup. Consumers shouldn’t jump to conclusions,” despite one “bad apple,” Vaudeville said.
Efforts to reach Bourdeau on social media were not successful, and the phone number listed on syrup cans associated with his business was not in service.
“Unfortunately, we are not immune to this kind of exceptional situation, which must absolutely be condemned in the strongest possible terms,” Vaudeville added.
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