Category: News

Not only our trees are solar powered — NOW our building is solar powered as well! 

With a product that is dependent on a healthy environment, Anderson’s Maple Syrup believes it is important to work toward zero emissions in our processes. If solar power is good enough for our trees, it should work for us. That is why we asked MC Power and Legacy Solar to install a solar system to power our facility and further reduce the amount of carbon we produce. During the summer months, we should produce more electricity than we use. That extra electricity is pumped back into the grid, to provide clean energy to our neighbors.

We were really excited to be featured on Manufacturing Marvels.

Indigenous people of North America have been making Pure Maple Syrup for centuries. The simple process of collecting sap from a Maple Tree and concentrating it into Pure Maple Syrup was shared with early traders and settlers. Research has found that Pure Maple Syrup is among the healthiest sweeteners available. It naturally contains vitamins, minerals, and over 60 antioxidants. Family-owned and operated Anderson’s Maple Syrup has been sharing pure maple syrup with customers across the country for nearly one hundred years. It all began in 1928 as a hobby to provide something pure, sweet, and natural on the family’s breakfast table. Over the next three generations, Anderson’s Maple Syrup grew organically selling into Mom & Pop stores, grocery retailers, and foodservice accounts across the United States. With a product that is dependent on healthy forests, Anderson’s Maple Syrup is very aware of the impact they have on the environment. They generate most of their power from solar panels and help mentor other producers about healthy forestry practices. All these efforts result in an operation that absorbs more carbon than it produces. There are no additives or preservatives in Anderson’s Pure Maple Syrup. 100% Pure Maple Syrup made from Maple Tree Sap is exactly what you get every time you purchase a bottle of Anderson’s. It’s that simple. So you can feel good about drizzling it on anything from ham to coffee to waffles. Anderson’s Maple Syrup. A tradition that sticks.

Anderson’s offered some of our expertise to the latest issue of the K.I.T. Ezine you can view it here

Kid’s Imagination Train was created to encourage kids to read and to learn.  We also wanted to give kids the opportunity to illustrate our features and have their work published online.  Drawing pictures benefits kids because it offers them a chance to be creative while reflecting on what they’ve read. 
The second reason KIT was developed was to give writers an opportunity to have their stories and articles published.  With KIT, writers can earn credits to build their bios.   
KIT began as a blog in 2013.  Since then, our little magazine has evolved.  The homepage acquired a professional look thanks to the work of a graphic designer. We added an audio page where children may listen to stories and articles. How cool is that?  And, KIT can be read as a flipbook.  

If you are interested in more maple educational resources the WMSPA offers Lesson plans. and other resources on their web site.

CUMBERLAND (WKOW) — Maple forests are only found in the northeast quarter of North America. Maple trees only thrive in a specific region from New England to Minnesota and the Canadian provinces that border those states.

“We’ve just kind of continued to grow. At our peak production we were tapping 18,000 trees,” Steve Anderson, Owner of Anderson’s Maple Syrup said.

The company was established in 1928 and its products are in grocery stores around the country. The best part about this third generation company is that it’s made in northern Wisconsin.

“We are now in close to nine thousand grocery stores around the United States. We have some overseas customers,” Anderson said.

“Our bottles all say made in the USA on them, and that’s something to give us an edge over our Canadian counterparts.”

One reason this syrup is so popular is the company’s commitment to quality. If maple syrup is stored for more than 48 hours it starts to spoil. So they boil it into syrup as soon as it’s gathered from the tree. Prior to sale it goes through one final process.

“Just before we bottle it, we boil it again,” Anderson said.

“That does a couple of things for us. It’s a purity thing, but it also that fresh flavor that is there the first couple of months after syrup is made. It kind of fades with time. But by re-boiling, we bring some of that back. And that extra heat, that extra boiling, that extra time that we take, locks in a freshness into our bottles that very few other people do get.”

In Wisconsin, March is a prime month for tapping sugar maple trees, when the sap is sweetest. Generally the Maple syrup is harvested and made within a short three-month window from February to April.

“Knowing our name’s on the bottle, we want to make sure that people are getting something that we can be, you know, glad to have on our own pancakes that we would think was the best,” Anderson said.

Anderson’s Maple Syrup is a Wisconsin favorite

Andersons has been named the Most Splurge-Worthy Maple Syrup by Delish and we couldn’t agree more. You can view the post here https://www.delish.com/food-news/g25577695/best-maple-syrup-brands/

Anderson’s Maple Syrup has received internationally recognized certification from the Safe Quality Food Institute. SQF Certification is recognized by retailers and foodservice providers worldwide as meeting multiple levels of rigorous, credible standards of food safety management. SQF Certification is among the few recognized by the Global Food Safety Initiative, which was developed to hold companies to universal food safety and quality codes. SQF Certification provides assurance of working conditions that are safe for food and employees. A third party audit verifies compliance. You can read the whole press release here

Steve and Alison Anderson were awarded the Wisconsin Maple Syrup Producers Association (WMSPA), Producer of the Year award in January at WMSPA’s annual winter institute in Wausau. The title is awarded each year to honor a producer for their efforts in and promotion of the maple syrup industry. The Anderson family has the distinction of being the only producers in Wisconsin to have three generations of syrup makers awarded the WMSPA Producer of the Year award. Paul Anderson was honored in 1981, Norman Anderson in 1993 and Steve and Alison Anderson in 2014.

The Wisconsin Maple Syrup Producers Association is dedicated to improving the ability of its members to produce and market the finest pure maple syrup in North America. The Producer of the Year recipient is chosen from a group of producers who are active in the WMSPA and freely give of their time and ideas to better the association.

Anderson’s Maple Syrup, near Cumberland, Wisconsin, has been a family-run business since 1928. In 1928, Paul Anderson began tapping trees and making just enough maple syrup for his family and neighbors to enjoy. As Paul sold more syrup, he relied less on dairy farming for income and in 1957, he turned to syrup making and syrup equipment sales full time. Soon, Paul and his son Norman were running the business together.

The Anderson’s began selling syrup making equipment in 1954, when the family became a Leader Evaporator dealer. In the 1970s, the Andersons were at peak production, tapping almost 18,000 trees with buckets on various pieces of land across Wisconsin’s north woods. Norman ran at this capacity for about 10 years while he expanded the business and increased syrup and equipment sales. By 1980, the Andersons were selling far more syrup than they could produce themselves. Norman began purchasing syrup from other local producers who purchased syrup making equipment from him. Anderson’s still operates on this cooperative style of model.

Norman hired the company’s first full-time employee in 1974. Norman maintained important sales connections and continued to expand the family business until Steve eventually took over. Though Norman “retired” in 1995, he continues to be very involved with the day-to-day activities of the business. Norman still helps to package syrup and is often consulted when syrup producers come into the store and have questions regarding syrup making. In 2009, Norman Anderson was recognized for his many contributions to the maple syrup industry and was inducted into the American Maple Hall of Fame.

Today, Anderson’s modern warehouse sits just across the road from the sugar house where Paul made syrup. With fewer than 10 employees, Anderson’s is still a small, family-run business, but the company now has a national, even global, presence. Steve has increased syrup sales and taken the Anderson’s Maple Syrup label from a regional family staple to a national syrup brand. Anderson’s extensive syrup equipment business has also grown from its humble roots to become one of the largest syrup equipment supply centers in the mid-west.

Steve and Alison were thrilled to be recipients of this year’s Maple Syrup Producer of the Year Award as it is their desire to encourage those interested in syrup making so that the legacy and art of this rustic tradition continues well into the future

My father, Norman Anderson and Grandfather Paul, started Anderson’s Sugar Bush way before the beginning of time, about 1930! Norman Anderson was raised in rural Cumberland, Wisconsin. His parents Paul and Clara Anderson, who had moved to Minneapolis, MN for a few years in the early 1920’s, moved back to rural Wisconsin just after Norman was born in 1928. Sapping was one of Paul’s passions from his early days in rural Cumberland and when they returned he immediately started tapping his trees. This passion was quickly passed on to Norman. By the time Norman was old enough to be helpful they were putting out close to 500 taps. In search of more taps, Paul and Norman partnered with a cousin who had more land. This brought the tap total to around 3,000 in 1940. This growth was good, but in 1946 Paul and Norman decided it was time to expand again and purchase a commercial evaporator for $600. The cousins were out. “Too much money,” they said. Norman and Paul were on their own. The pair continued to tap trees and sell their syrup to local stores throughout Minnesota and Wisconsin. In 1953 they suffered a small set back. A Tornado destroyed 4,000 taps and forced them into another purchase, an 80 acre plot of land about 4 miles from home this brought their total taps up to 5,000. In 1953 Paul and Norman agreed to become equipment dealers for the Leader Evaporator Company. Up until this time they had been managing a dairy herd as well. In 1957 they sold the cattle and turned solely to the maple syrup industry to provide for their family. In 1960 more land was rented to bring the total taps up to 12,000 with two boiling locations, one 40 miles away in Minnesota and one at home in Wisconsin. In 1963 Norman married Janice Carlson and took over control of the company. Paul remained very active for many years after. In 1973 another 100 acres was purchased about 25 miles from home and that brought Norman to his peak production of almost 18,000 taps (all on buckets). Norman ran at this capacity for about 10 years until an aging uncle whom had been running the Minnesota operation was no longer able to help. Taping was then cut back to around 10,000 and Norman only cooked at the home location.

Norman has been a member of both the Minnesota and Wisconsin Maple Syrup Producers Associations for many years. He was also one of the early members/directors of the IMSI and Anderson’s Maple Syrup still holds a director’s position today. Norman served as a Director of the WMSPA for several years and currently serves on the State Fair Committee (1995 to present). Norman has been the head maple syrup judge at the Minnesota State Fair for the past 8 years as well as serving as judge at local county fairs. Norman and his wife Janice were given the Wisconsin Maple Syrup Producer of the Year award in 1993 and also hosted the WMSPA fall tour that year. Anderson’s Maple Syrup, Inc. was also home to the annual first tree tapping in 1992 and 2003. Norman takes every chance he can to promote maple syrup. He loves to invite groups, especially from Sweden (as he is Swedish), to feed them pure maple syrup over waffles and tell them about how maple syrup is produced. In 2008 Norman and Janice Anderson were among the first to be given the Lifetime Membership Award by the WMSPA for their service in the maple industry.

Norman built up Anderson’s Sugar Bush and in 1994 incorporated and changed the name to Anderson’s Maple Syrup, Inc. to reflect the company’s true purpose: providing the best maple syrup possible to our customers. Norman continued to be run the business until 1997 when I, Steven Anderson, took over. Norman is still an important part of the business today and I rely on his experience and guidance daily. Anderson’s Maple Syrup, Inc. is now one of the largest packagers of pure maple syrup in the mid-west and among the top equipment dealers in the region. This is all thanks to the hard work and determination of Norman Anderson and his father, Paul. I only hope that I can follow in this rich tradition of quality and integrity. Thank you dad!

When I think about my father and the friends and relationships he has created over his years in this industry, I know it is due to integrity and devotion to them and the industry. I don’t think you would ever find a person that my father has dealt with, that would say anything negative. He always treated everyone as a friend, with respect and fairness. I hear on the phone almost daily, “How is your dad doing?” then followed by “I sure enjoy your father, please tell him hi.” This is only proof to me of his impact on our customers and the industry.