Selling maple syrup in Vermont
Yes — and if you make and pack your own syrup, Vermont doesn't require a license for it. What Vermont does have is a detailed maple law: packaged syrup must hit at least 66.9 °Brix, carry a Vermont grade, a batch code and a tamper-proof seal, and only 100% Vermont-made syrup can be called Vermont maple.
September 25, 2026
Confirmed in the official rules
Sugarmakers who make, pack and sell their own syrup don't need a state license. Vermont's maple license (6 V.S.A. § 483, issued annually by the Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets) applies only to dealers and processors — people who buy syrup from others to repack, resell in bulk or make into other products: 1,000–2,499 gallons a year needs a dealer license ($30), and 2,500+ gallons a processor license ($150), renewed before July 1. The Agency says outright that the license doesn't apply to sugarmakers who process and pack their own syrup, or to anyone buying under 1,000 gallons a year. Vermont's health-code food manufacturing license also excludes "a place where only maple syrup or maple products" are prepared (18 V.S.A. § 4301).
Official pageVermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets — Maple Products (dealer/processor license only if you buy 1,000+ gallons)Vermont doesn't license or inspect the place where you make your own syrup: the food manufacturing establishment definition in 18 V.S.A. § 4301 excludes places where only maple syrup or maple products are prepared, and the maple law's licensing and inspection program covers dealers and processors, not sugarmakers packing their own syrup. That exclusion covers maple only — if the same space also makes other foods for sale, Vermont's food manufacturing rules may apply. Your syrup still has to meet every grade, density, container and labeling rule below.
Grading is mandatory. Vermont's Grade A classes are "Golden Color / Delicate Taste" (75.0% light transmittance or more), "Amber Color / Rich Taste", "Dark Color / Robust Taste" and "Very Dark Color / Strong Taste" (under 25%); syrup with objectionable odors or flavors is Processing Grade and can't be sold in packaged (5 gallons or less) containers. Packaged syrup must be at least 66.9 °Brix (36 °Baumé) at 60 °F and no more than 68.9 °Brix — stricter than the 66.0 federal minimum. Bulk syrup (over 5 gallons) may range from 65.9 to 68.9 °Brix, or must carry a notice stating its actual density; bulk sold straight to consumers or restaurants must meet the packaged standard.
Check your density with the hydrometer calculator →- The true name of the product ("maple syrup")
- The grade, on the principal display panel — one grade per container, with all words of the grade in equal size and prominence
- "Vermont" or "Vt." alongside the grade when the syrup is 100% Vermont-produced
- Name, address and ZIP code of the packer
- Volume of contents (measured at 68 °F / 20 °C)
- A batch code on every retail container of Grade A syrup
Vermont's maple law doesn't require a license to sell your own syrup, whether from the sugarhouse, at farmers markets, to stores or online — the same grade, density and label rules apply everywhere it's "packed, sold, offered, or exposed for sale". Anything implying Vermont origin — "Vermont maple syrup", "State of Vermont pure maple syrup" or similar — may only be used on 100% Vermont-produced syrup, and price advertising for syrup must state the grade and volume with equal prominence. Bulk syrup sold to a packer or processor in containers used only for transport or storage is exempt from the retail label rules, but bulk sold directly to consumers or restaurants must be labeled like packaged syrup. Buyers who acquire 1,000+ gallons a year for resale need their own dealer or processor license. The Agency inspects syrup sold at retail for grade, density, flavor and labeling.
Packaged syrup containers must have tamper-proof seals approved by the Secretary of Agriculture, be clean, rust-free and airtight; bulk containers must be steam-cleaned or sterilized with hot water before filling (maple rules, Sec. VI). Containers and equipment touching sap or syrup must be clean and sanitary, and plastic-resin equipment needs the manufacturer's written certification that it won't leach or contaminate (6 V.S.A. § 494). Syrup can't be bleached or lightened except by simple filtration (§ 491).
There's no federal license to sell maple syrup in the US — whether you need a license, where you can boil and where you can sell are decided by your state. Federal rules still set the floor for every jar: the FDA defines what "maple syrup" is and what a food label must say, and USDA publishes grade standards that are voluntary at the federal level.
- FDA standard of identity: "maple syrup" (or "maple sirup") is made by concentrating and heat-treating maple sap and must contain at least 66% soluble solids by weight (21 CFR 168.140).
- Every packaged food label needs the product's name on the front panel (21 CFR 101.3), the net quantity of contents in fluid measure (21 CFR 101.7), and the name and place of business of the maker, packer or distributor, including city, state and ZIP code (21 CFR 101.5).
- Nutrition Facts panels are often not required for small producers: direct-to-consumer sellers with $50,000 or less a year in food sales to consumers (or $500,000 or less in total sales to consumers) are exempt if the label makes no nutrition claims (21 CFR 101.9(j)(1)). A separate low-volume exemption covers firms with fewer than 100 full-time-equivalent employees selling fewer than 100,000 units, and firms under 10 employees selling under 10,000 units don't have to file a notice (21 CFR 101.9(j)(18)).
- USDA's grade standards (effective March 2, 2015) are voluntary at the federal level: Grade A comes in four color/taste classes — Golden (Delicate), Amber (Rich), Dark (Robust) and Very Dark (Strong) — at 66–68.9% solids (°Brix). Processing Grade must be packed in containers of 5 gallons or larger and can't go into retail-size containers. Some states make grade labeling mandatory under state law (in this guide: Maine, New Hampshire, New York, Vermont, and Wisconsin for licensed processors), while others leave it voluntary — see your state's page.
- FDA facility registration: FDA treats boiling sap into syrup as "manufacturing/processing", so a dedicated sugarhouse generally has to register with FDA unless an exemption applies — for example, it's a retail food establishment, meaning its direct-to-consumer food sales are worth more than its sales to all other buyers (sales at roadside stands, farmers markets, CSAs, fairs and by mail or online from a farm or farm-operated business all count as direct), or the syrup is made in your home or in an outbuilding that's still used the way a normal home building would be (FDA facility-registration Q&A, 7th ed., 2018).
- Licenses, home-kitchen rules and sugarhouse inspections are state matters, and federal rules apply on top of them — USDA's grade standards say they don't excuse failure to comply with state law.
Official sources
- 6 V.S.A. Chapter 32: Maple Products — Vermont General Assembly
- CVR 20-011-002 Maple Products Regulations (current through July 18, 2019) — Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets
- 18 V.S.A. § 4301 — Definitions (food manufacturing establishment) — Vermont General Assembly
- Maple Products (Maple Program, dealer and processor license) — Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets
- Act 42 (2025), An act relating to exemptions for food manufacturing establishments (H.401) — Vermont General Assembly
- 21 CFR 168.140 — Maple sirup (standard of identity) — U.S. Food and Drug Administration (eCFR)
- 21 CFR 101.3 — Identity labeling of food in packaged form — U.S. Food and Drug Administration (eCFR)
- 21 CFR 101.5 — Food; name and place of business of manufacturer, packer, or distributor — U.S. Food and Drug Administration (via Cornell LII)
- 21 CFR 101.7 — Declaration of net quantity of contents — U.S. Food and Drug Administration (eCFR)
- 21 CFR 101.9 — Nutrition labeling of food (exemptions in paragraph (j)) — U.S. Food and Drug Administration (via Cornell LII)
- United States Standards for Grades of Maple Syrup (effective March 2, 2015) — USDA Agricultural Marketing Service
- Questions and Answers Regarding Food Facility Registration (Seventh Edition): Guidance for Industry — U.S. Food and Drug Administration
This page summarizes public rules as we read them on September 25, 2026. It isn't legal advice, and rules change — confirm with the agency before you sell.
Getting ready for the season? When to tap in Vermont →
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