Police Probing Theft of Millions of Pounds of Maple Syrup From Strategic Reserve

An anonymous reader writes with this bit from the Globe and Mail: "Quebec police are on the hunt for a sticky-fingered thief after millions of dollars of maple syrup vanished from a Quebec warehouse. The theft was discovered during a routine inventory check last week at the St-Louis-de-Blandford warehouse, where the syrup is being held temporarily. The Federation of Quebec Maple Syrup Producers, which is responsible for the global strategic maple syrup reserve, initially kept the news quiet, hoping it would help police solve the crime quickly."

Comments

Maple Syrup Strategic Reserve?

[Sez Zero]

Wait, what?!

Re:Maple Syrup Strategic Reserve?

[Hatta]

They're just lucky it was a theft and the tank didn't burst.

Re:Maple Syrup Strategic Reserve?

[Anonymous Coward]

It's the Canadian equivalent of the Federal Reserve.

Re:Maple Syrup Strategic Reserve?

[jeffasselin]

Production of maple syrup can vary highly from one year to the next, depending on weather conditions. The ideal conditions are rather strict, where the temperature is below freezing at night just above 4C during the day. If it's too warm or too cold, very little production can be done.

Because of this, each year producers deliver some of their syrup to the strategic reserve, to ensure that every year a certain amount can be sold on the local and global markets. Before this initiative was taken, the were years when the price of syrup was really high, and even unavailable. That almost led to riots! Production these last few years has been much better, so the reserve isn't tapped much, but it's still a good idea, we don't know what might happen with GCC.

Re:Maple Syrup Strategic Reserve?

[anagama]

With the exception that maple syrup is actually worth something.

Re:Maple Syrup Strategic Reserve?

[Anonymous Coward]

*facepalm*

Canada, buddy, look, seriously here. I've got numerous good friends of mine in various areas of Canada, from the coast of British Columbia to the fine metropolitan city of Toronto (sorry, I don't know any Newfies). So I spend a fair amount of time rolling my eyes at the usual Canadian stereotypes the less-cultured of my American brethren pump out on a regular basis whenever Canada is mentioned.

But, man, seriously. Your Maple Syrup Strategic Reserve isn't going to make that any easier. Come on, now.

Re:Maple Syrup Strategic Reserve?

[azadrozny]

I have been cornering the market on Frozen Concentrated Orange Juice. One bad season and I will bring the world to its knees. Bwhaahaa!

Re:Maple Syrup Strategic Reserve?

[jhoegl]

When you steal maple syrup from Canada, you see angry Canadians.
We must record and study the Canadian in this rare form.

Re:Maple Syrup Strategic Reserve?

[zlives]

soylent syrup is made from people

Re:Maple Syrup Strategic Reserve?

[Anonymous Coward]

I don't like where this discussion is heading, it's a slippery slope to talk about a sticky situation like this...

Re:Maple Syrup Strategic Reserve?

[Anonymous Coward]

Dear USA. The fact that you try to make fun of us... is in itself hilarious.

If you're going to laugh at us, laugh at us for our godawful government currently trying as hard as possible to make Canada as much like the USA as possible.

Re:Maple Syrup Strategic Reserve?

[TubeSteak]

I wouldn't be so quick to call his comment rational.
Or at least not the part about oil, unless global commerce is also fueled by maple syrup.

Nobody keeps strategic oil reserves "to stabilize the price so people keep buying the stuff instead of switching to something else"
They keep them so that the country doesn't grind to a halt the next time there's a significant supply disruption.

Re:Maple Syrup Strategic Reserve?

[Sarten-X]

Peak maple.

Re:Maple Syrup Strategic Reserve?

[Anubis IV]

There are conflicting reports that riots have broken out all across Canada. Or that everyone seems to be fine with it and is going about their day as normal. Hard to say, since they look the same.

Re:Maple Syrup Strategic Reserve?

[Adriax]

Syrup refineries have been cutting the pure maple with corn-based additives for years. Peak maple is just a myth perpetuated by Big Maple to elevate prices so they keep their income level while demand for the pure stuff drops.
In reality Canada is sitting on centuries of maple just waiting to be tapped.

Re:Maple Syrup Strategic Reserve?

[jd2112]

News Alert! The Strategic Waffle Reserve in Belgium has been robbed. Police believe the crimes may be related.

Re:Maple Syrup Strategic Reserve?

[Anonymous Coward]

Yeah it was bloody surreal. Only in Canada I guess. I mean I never have even seen, smelled, or eaten anything with maple syrup. Its food so it is pretty important but calling a syrup a strategic product? Errr...

It is a strategic product. Have you ever read Dune? Where do you think Frank Herbert got the idea of spice?

I mean how else can you explain how most Canadians knew the Iraq war was going to end in pain but most Americans thought it would be a fun desert expedition? It is the precognitive effects of maple syrup (spice)!

To put it bluntly: if you eat food with maple syrup occasionally, nothing will happen. But if you become dependent on it then withdrawal will kill you. A strategic maple syrup reserve is critical for the survival of Canada. The biggest question, though, is how a country with so many precogs couldn't figure out that someone was trying to steal from the maple syrup reserve. I think there is a lot more to this story than meets the eye. Perhaps Canada is only trying to make us think that there was a theft so that we will feel that they are weak.

Re:Maple Syrup Strategic Reserve?

[MobileTatsu-NJG]

I love to make fun of Candians every chance I get. But I do have to admit.. I envy their stereotypes. The rest of the world thinks I'm a lazy overworking fatass who prioritizes things like which gym to go to over geography.

Re:Maple Syrup Strategic Reserve?

[Anonymous Coward]

A reward of 2L of pure Canadian maple syrup will be given to anyone who captures the author of the above comment.

Re:Maple Syrup Strategic Reserve?

[grcumb]

Syrup refineries have been cutting the pure maple with corn-based additives for years. Peak maple is just a myth perpetuated by Big Maple to elevate prices so they keep their income level while demand for the pure stuff drops. In reality Canada is sitting on centuries of maple just waiting to be tapped.

Meh, that's nothing but long-discredited trickle-down economics.

Unrelated Note

[AioKits]

Issuing invitation to all of /. for world's largest pancake and waffle breakfast! Bring your family, we have so much syrup to unload...

Re:Surely I'm not the only one surprised by this?

[K. S. Kyosuke]

There's a global strategic whiskey reserve in Ireland and a global strategic beer reserve in Czech Republic. I believe that there's also a global strategic hamburger reserve somewhere in the USA.

Something isn't right

[Anonymous Coward]

Millions of pounds means hundreds of thousands of gallons, means 1000 or so tanker trucks worth of the stuff. We're either dealing with an accounting error or a theft over an extremely long time frame.

Re:Something isn't right

[deains]

Or both. Gotta watch those sticky-fingered accountants.

Re:Damn

[deains]

I guess this could be a sticking point for the Canadian authorities. They sure made those looking after the product look like saps. But they'll catch the thief eventually, and he'll get his just desserts.

You're welcome.

Re:In other news...

[AvitarX]

The odds that IHOP would use actual Maple Syrup approach 0, even if it were free.