Quota for Young Entrepreneurs

The deposit period is over for 2023.

Every year Québec Maple Syrup Producers increases the overall interim quota by 40,000 taps or the equivalent in kilos to add capacity for new producers. Quotas are based on the average per-tap benchmark yield for the five years preceding the current application year.

“Per-tap benchmark yield” means the average per-tap maple syrup yield in Québec expressed in kilos in a marketing year calculated by an independent organization. This average is 3,31 pounds for 2023.


The Young Entrepreneur Program assigns quotas to new individual producers and new businesses. For the two marketing years after their project is approved, young entrepreneurs can:

  1. Operate a sugar bush with 500 to 25,000 taps for which no quota has previously been set
  2. Add a maximum of 10,000 taps to a sugar bush that already has a quota and that they plan to buy or lease within a year of applying to the program

Eligibility

Applicants must:

  1. Be between 18 and 40 years of age
  2. Not be employees of PPAQ
  3. Hold a certificate in maple production from a recognized school, or equivalent
  4. Not be directly or indirectly involved in operating a sugar bush with a quota issued by PPAQ and not lease such a sugar bush or be the agent, spouse, nominee, shareholder, or business partner of someone who operates such a sugar bush and who is not subject to the Joint Plan.
  5. Hold the following rights for a sugar bush:
    • On private land, either a title of ownership or a signed promise to purchase, or a lease for at least 15 years recorded in the land register or a promise to lease to the same effect
    • On public land, a permit to operate or a certificate from Ministère des Ressources naturelles et des Forêts or the appropriate authority or its agent certifying that the sugar bush is for their exclusive use

Legal persons and businesses are also eligible for a Young Entrepreneur quota if, as at June 15 of the year in which the application is filed, the following conditions are met:

  1. The legal person or business holds the following rights for a sugar bush:
    • On private land, either a title of ownership or a signed promise to purchase, or a lease for at least 15 years recorded in the land register or a promise to lease to the same effect
    • On public land, a permit to operate or a certificate from Ministère des Ressources naturelles et des Forêts or from the appropriate authority or its agent certifying that the sugar bush in question is for the exclusive use of the legal person or company
  2. More than 50% of the company or its share capital is owned by people who meet all the eligibility requirements
  3. None of the shareholders or partners hold a quota

To obtain a Young Entrepreneur quota, no later than June 15 eligible participants must submit to PPAQ the form that states how many taps apply to the quota and the following supporting documents:

  1. For a sugar bush on public land, the permit to operate or the certificate from Ministère des Ressources naturelles et des Forêts or from the appropriate authority or its agent certifying that the sugar bush is for their exclusive use
  2. For a sugar bush on private land, the title of ownership or an accepted offer to purchase or a lease for at least 15 years recorded in the land register or a promise to lease to the same effect
  3. A plan of the sugar bush
  4. Proof of the financing required for the project and, if applicable, the name of the lender

PPAQ assesses eligible applicants based on a chart you can view on our website.

If there are enough taps, all compliant applications (those which score at least 75 points on the chart) will be approved.

If there are not enough taps, PPAQ will draw compliant applications at random until there are no more taps available. The last project selected will be approved in full even if it brings the number of assigned taps over the limit for the program.

In the event of a random draw, applicants whose project was compliant but who were not selected earn an additional entry in the draw for the next and each subsequent year provided they submit the same project that scored at least 75 points.

No later than August 15, PPAQ will notify Young Entrepreneur quota applicants of the outcome.

Successful applicants must agree to operate the sugar bush for at least five consecutive marketing years once their project is up and running.

 

Next section
Quotas for New Maple Enterprises