Maple sugaring season less than two weeks away

WORTHINGTON, Mass. (WWLP) - The official start to western Massachusetts' maple sugaring season will be celebrated in Worthington early next month.

A kickoff event is scheduled for March 4th at the Red Bucket Sugar Shack in Worthington at 584 Kinnebrook Road.

The event is scheduled to coincide with the time when more than 300 maple producers across the state begin to tap their maple trees and harvest sap.

Some sugar makers got an early jump on the season.  Thanks to favorable weather conditions, some sugar makers have already begun making syrup this season.

Maple sugar farmers tap trees and capture the sap and boil it down in big open vats or pans.  It takes 40 gallons of sap to produce one gallon of pure maple syrup.

In an average year, Massachusetts maple producers produce about 50,000 gallons of maple syrup worth almost $3 million.