Assemblyman Ken Blankenbush attended a tree-tapping ceremony on Sunday, March 20 at Swiss-er Sweet Maple Farm in Castorland, owned by Jason and Barbara Zehr. The event helped kick-off New York State Maple Weekend, a statewide event showcasing New York's maple products. In 2010, New York state’s maple producers made 312,000 gallons of syrup, placing New York second in national maple producers, behind only Vermont. The economic impact of maple syrup production in New York state is estimated at more than $5.5 million.