Ranch tour #3.
Onto the 2nd ranch of our U.S Ranch and Farm Tour, where we are on a on a 6-month tour across America, we're visiting regenerative farms to podcast with ranchers, tour their land, document their work, and shake the hand that feeds us. Today's episode is with Maple Syrup rancher, Jacob Powsner. Jacob is great value. He absolutely loves maple syrup, which just makes the conversation that much better. He's living his dream. Alas, we do a total expose on everything Maple Syrup - super fascinating stuff.
Enjoy!
Jacob Baird is part of the fourth generation running Baird Farm, a 560-acre maple syrup operation in Vermont. In this episode, Jacob and Ryan dive into the full story behind maple syrup—how it’s made, what separates the real from the fake, and why so many food labels today are built on confusion. From the misuse of terms like “natural” and “regenerative,” to the nutritional power of real syrup and the policies shaping food transparency, this is a candid conversation about what honest food really takes.
Key topics:
- How real maple syrup is made—from forest to sugarhouse
- The difference between real and fake maple products
- Why “natural,” “organic,” and “regenerative” labels often mislead
- The nutritional and environmental case for real maple syrup
- Small farms vs big food: marketing, policy, and system capture
Timestamps:
00:00:00 “When you eat good food, you connect to the land”
00:03:30 The 100-year family history of Baird Farm and the shift from dairy to maple
00:06:00 How 15,000 trees are tapped and managed across the Vermont woods
00:09:00 What makes real maple syrup: process, purity, and organic practices
00:12:30 The truth about fake syrup, flavoring loopholes, and deceptive labels
00:16:00 The “natural flavors” problem and how big food co-opts language
00:19:00 Why regenerative is at risk of being greenwashed
00:22:00 Health benefits of real maple syrup: minerals, glycemic load, and antioxidants
00:25:00 Why maple syrup protects land from development and deforestation
00:28:00 How big players are consolidating the maple industry and what’s at stake
00:31:00 Jacob’s vision for small, intentional growth and honest food systems
Connect with Jason & Baird Farm:
Website
Instagram
Follow the tour on YouTube
