Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Variation and Correlation of Properties in Different Grades of Maple Syrup

  • Published:
Plant Foods for Human Nutrition Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Thirty five commercial maple syrups from twelve producers in Southern Ontario were evaluated for properties including light transmittance, autofluorescence, density, pH, total soluble solids (TSS), glucose and fructose content, total phenol content, antioxidant potential and mineral content (Mg, Mn, P, Zn, Ca, K, Fe and Pb). A high degree of variability was found in many characteristics, often exceeding an order of magnitude. Syrups were categorized based on light transmission at 560 nm into amber (12), dark (13) and very dark (10) using International Maple Syrup Institute (IMSI) guidelines. No statistical differences were found among grades of syrup for density, pH, TSS, glucose, fructose, total reducing sugars, glucose:fructose ratio, magnesium, manganese or potassium. Darker syrups showed significantly higher autofluorescence, total phenol content, antioxidant potential, phosphorous, calcium and total mineral content. Significant negative correlations of percent transmission with total phenol content, antioxidant potential and total mineral content are reported. Significant positive correlations among total phenol content, antioxidant potential and total mineral content are also described. The results from this study suggest that darker syrups tend to contain more beneficial traits and may be applied in developing functional foods and value added products.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Abbreviations

DPPH:

2,2-diphenyl-1- picrylhydrazyl

E360-F460:

360 nm excitation and 460 nm emission

EPA:

Environment protection agency

GAE:

Gallic acid equivalent

IMSI:

International Maple Syrup Institute

OMAFRA:

Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food

TE:

Trolox equivalent

TSS:

Total soluble solids

References

  1. Stuckel JG, Low NH (1996) The chemical composition of 80 pure maple syrup samples produced in North America. Food Res Int 29:373–379

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Li L, Seeram NP (2012) Chemical composition and biological effects of maple syrup. In : Patil, BS, Guddadarangavvanahally KJ, Chidambara M, Kotamballi N and Seeram, NP (eds) Emerging trends in Dietary components for preventing and combating disease, 1st edn. Amer Chem Soc., pp 323-333

  3. Panneton B, Clément A, Lagacé L (2013) Potential of fluorescence spectroscopy for the characterisation of maple syrup flavours. J Sci Food Agric doi:10.1002/jsfa.6172

  4. OMAFRA. (2012) Maple Syrup. http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/crops/facts/info_maple_syrup.htm. Accessed 18 Jun 2013

  5. Statistics Canada (2013) Production and farm value of maple products. http://www5.statcan.gc.ca/cansim/pick-choisir?lang=eng&p2=33&id=0010008. Accessed 16 Jun 2013

  6. Thériault M, Caillet S, Kermasha S, Lacroix M (2006) Antioxidant, antiradical and antimutagenic activities of phenolic compounds present in maple products. Food Chem 98:490–501

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Legault J, Girard-Lalancette K, Grenon C, Dussault C, Pichette A (2010) Anti-oxidant activity, inhibition of nitric oxide overproduction, and in vitro antiproliferative effect of maple sap and syrup from Acer saccharum. J Med Food 13:460–468

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Abou Zaid MM, Nozzolillo C, Tonon A, Coppens M, Lombardo DA (2008) High-performance liquid chromatography characterization and identification of antioxidant polyphenols in maple syrup. Pharma Biol 46:117–125

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Li L, Seeram NP (2011) Further investigation into maple syrup yields 3 new lignans, a new phenylpropanoid, and 26 other phytochemicals. J Agric Food Chem 59:7708–7716

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Belford AL, Lindsay RC, Ridley SC (1991) Contributions of selected flavor compounds to the sensory properties of maple syrup. J Sensory Stud 6:101–118

    Google Scholar 

  11. Potter TL, Fagerson IS (1992) Phenolic compounds in maple syrup. In: Ho, Chi-Tang, Lee, Chang Y, Huang MT (eds) Phenolic compounds in food and their effects on health I. ACS Symposium Series, Amer Chem Soc. pp 192–199

  12. Kermasha S, Goetghebeur JD (1995) Determination of phenolic compound profiles in maple products by high-performance liquid chromatography. J Agric Food Chem 43:708–716

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Akochi KE, Alli I, Kermasha S (1997) Characterization of the pyrazines formed during the processing of maple syrup. J Agric Food Chem 45:3368–3373

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Li L, Seeram NP (2010) Maple syrup phytochemicals include lignans, coumarins, a stilbene, and other previously unreported antioxidant phenolic compounds. J Agric Food Chem 58:11673–11679

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. Perkins TD, Berg AK Van Den (2009) Maple syrup-production, composition, chemistry, and sensory characteristics. In: Taylor SL (ed) Advances in food and nutrition research, 1st ed. Elsevier Inc., 56:101–143

  16. Ball DW (2007) The chemical composition of maple syrup. J Chem Educ 84:1647–1650

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Gupta S, Prakash J (2009) Studies on Indian green leafy vegetables for their antioxidant activity. Plant Foods Hum Nutr 64:39–45

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. González-Sarrías A, Li L, Seeram NP (2012) Anticancer effects of maple syrup phenolics and extracts on proliferation, apoptosis, and cell cycle arrest of human colon cells. J Funct Foods 4:185–196

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. IMSI. Comparison of proposed standard maple grades and nomenclature with existing maple grades and nomenclature in Canada and the United States. http://www.internationalmaplesyrupinstitute.com/uploads/7/0/9/2/7092109/chart _comparing_existing_grades_to_imsi_standard.pdf. Accessed 18 Jun 2013

  20. Van Den Berg A, Perkins T, Isselhardt M (2006) Sugar profiles of maple syrup grades. Maple Syrup Digest 18A(4):12–13

    Google Scholar 

  21. Clément A, Lagacé L, Panneton B (2010) Assessment of maple syrup physico-chemistry and typicity by means of fluorescence spectroscopy. J Food Eng 97:17–23

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Medina MB (2011) Determination of the total phenolics in juices and superfruits by a novel chemical method. J Funct Foods 3:79–87

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Fukumoto LR, Mazza G (2000) Assessing antioxidant and prooxidant activities of phenolic compounds. J Agric Food Chem 48:3597–3604

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  24. Herald TJ, Gadgil P, Tilley M (2012) High-throughput micro plate assays for screening flavonoid content and DPPH-scavenging activity in sorghum bran and flour. J Sci Food Agric 92:2326–2331

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Naghski J, Willits CO (1957) Maple sirup. XI. Relationship between the type and origin of reducing sugars in sap and the color and flavor of maple sirup. J Food Sci 22:567–571

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. Heinonen I, Lehtonen P, Hopia A (1998) Antioxidant activity of berry and fruit wines and liquors. J Agric Food Chem 46:25–31

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. Liu M, Li XQ, Weber C, Lee CY, Brown J, Rui HL (2002) Antioxidant and antiproliferative activities of raspberries. J Agric Food Chem 50:2926–2930

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  28. González-Sarrías A, Ma H, Edmonds ME, Seeram NP (2013) Maple polyphenols, ginnalins A-C, induce S- and G2/M-cell cycle arrest in colon and breast cancer cells mediated by decreasing cyclins A and D1 levels. Food Chem 136:636–642

    Article  Google Scholar 

  29. Phillips KM, Carlsen MH, Blomhoff R (2009) Total antioxidant content of alternatives to refined sugar. J Am Dietetic Assoc 109:64–71

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Lester GE, Lewers KS, Medina MB, Saftner RA (2012) Comparative analysis of strawberry total phenolics via Fast Blue BB vs. Folin – Ciocalteu: Assay interference by ascorbic acid. J Food Comp Analysis 27:102–107

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  31. Snyder SM, Low RM, Stocks JC et al (2012) Juice, pulp and seeds fractionated from dry climate primocane raspberry cultivars (Rubus idaeus) have significantly different antioxidant capacity, anthocyanin content and color. Plant Foods Hum Nutr 67:358–364

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  32. Leja M, Kamińska I, Kramer M et al (2013) The content of phenolic compounds and radical scavenging activity varies with carrot origin and root color. Plant Foods Hum Nutr 68:163–170

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  33. Ercisli S, Tosun M, Karlidag H et al (2012) Color and antioxidant characteristics of some fresh fig (Ficus carica L.) genotypes from northeastern Turkey. Plant Foods Hum Nutr 67:271–276

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge the Gosling Research Institute for Plant Preservation, University of Guelph, ON, Canada for financial support.

Compliance with Ethics Requirements

This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Plant Agriculture, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada

    Amritpal S. Singh, A. Maxwell P. Jones & Praveen K. Saxena

Authors
  1. Amritpal S. Singh
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. A. Maxwell P. Jones
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Praveen K. Saxena
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Praveen K. Saxena.

Electronic supplementary material

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Supplementary Table 1

(DOC 43 kb)

Supplementary Table 2

(DOC 122 kb)

Supplementary Table 3

(DOC 178 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Singh, A.S., Jones, A.M.P. & Saxena, P.K. Variation and Correlation of Properties in Different Grades of Maple Syrup. Plant Foods Hum Nutr 69, 50–56 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11130-013-0401-x

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11130-013-0401-x

Keywords

Search

Navigation