The 2026 maple sugaring season is well underway. Thank you to the folks at Richardson Family Farm in Hartland, VT, for taking the time to answer a few questions about their farm and products! Richardson Farm Maple provides maple syrup to both our Woodstock and Waterbury locations.

Q. Tell us your story.

A. In 1907 great grandpa James Johnson Richardson purchased our farm on Hartland Hill and moved up from Chester Vermont. Maple syrup was part of the “subsistence” at that time, but it wasn’t until grandpa Floyd and grandma Veneita sold syrup and maple butternut fudge to Gillingham’s in the ’40s that Maple became part of the business.

Floyd and Veneita’s children, James, Gordon, and Anita, expanded the sugaring business in the late ’60s. They hung 2,500 buckets and had one of the first modern tubing systems in the area, tapping nearly 4,000 trees on pipeline. Today Reid Richardson (with some help!) manages just under 12,000 taps on tubing.

All the sap runs to the sugarhouse. Reverse osmosis is used to remove water before cooking and the sap is boiled over a modern wood-fired evaporator. We don’t currently sell any maple butternut fudge, but you can find our syrup all over the Upper Valley and beyond, including great stores like the Woodstock Farmers’ Market!

Q. What makes your product unique?

A. What makes our maple syrup great is the attention to detail. From forest health to food safe production techniques to color, clarity, and FLAVOR. We strive to make the very best organic maple syrup you can buy.

Q. What inspires your work?(A place, tradition, ingredient, or philosophy.)

A. Reverence for the land is paramount. Tradition is certainly at the core of what we do and preserving a way of life that focuses on sustainability through sound forest management practices and modern production techniques is how we get there.

Q. What do you love most about being part of the Woodstock Farmers’ Market community?

A. We love their commitment to good healthy fresh food and good vibes!

Q. Is there anything customers might be surprised to learn about your farm, business, or process?

A. We are a dairy farm and maple sugaring operation and we manufacture split rail fencing. In the ’80s our family members Gordon and James Richardson invented the piggyback pan, which enhances the efficiency of maple syrup evaporators by 60%. They are still produced and sold today.