Andy, I do like the fact that you guys have a "Prime Minister" instead of a President. Your current one, I think is Stephen Harper who is basically a more polite version of George Bush with nicer hair. He probably won't last long - and best of all you have a system where you can bring down governments you don't like.
Now MAPLE SYRUP is another question.
Americans associate Vermont with maple syrup, but Quebec is its real center. The province's trees produce more than 70 percent of the world's supply and fill the majority of the United States' needs. The Federation of Quebec Maple Syrup Producers, is effectively a cartel, approved by the provincial government and backed by the law. In 1990, the federation became the only wholesale seller of the province's production, and in 2004, it gained the power to decide who gets to make maple syrup and how much. When the federation suspects farmers are producing and selling outside the system, it posts guards on their properties. It seeks fines from producers and buyers who do not follow the rule. In the most extreme situations, it seizes production.
For weeks, security guards, hired by the Federation of Quebec Maple Syrup Producers, kept watch over Mr. Hodge's farm. Then one day, the federation seized 20,400 pounds of maple syrup, his entire annual production, worth about 60,000 Canadian dollars, or nearly $46,000. The incident was part of the escalating battle with farmers like Mr. Hodge who break the law by not participating in the federation's tightly controlled production and sales system.
Then in 2012, $18 million of maple syrup was stolen from the
Global Strategic Reserve, a warehouse where the federation stockpiles the sweetener. Police arrested more than two dozen people in the heist, the first of whom is expected to go on trial in November.
Stacked in barrels nine high, the reserve currently holds about 60 million pounds of maple syrup.
Prices are set by the federation, in negotiation with a buyers' group. The federation holds most of the power, given that it controls a majority of the world's production.
No violation, it seems, is too little to escape its notice. Inspectors regularly patrol corner stores and small supermarkets. They want to see if producers who are allowed to sell only at their farms have modestly expanded their retail presence.
Fines, which are levied through a weight-based formula, have approached $1 million.
Mr. Hodge now owes about 115,000 Canadian dollars after the federation seized some of his provincial agricultural payments. He has run up about an additional 20,000 Canadian dollars in legal bills.
The federation also charges the producers for the round-the-clock guards. Mr. Hodge estimated that will add another 40,000 Canadian dollars.