Maple syrup isn't just a staple of Canadian culture. It's big business, especially in Quebec, where the sugary liquid is so vital to the economy that the province keeps a special syrup reserve on hand to control price fluctuations.

Except that reserve is running low, dangerously low, after a couple of warm winters coupled with increased demand ate up most of the excess. And with climate change bringing even warmer winters in the years to come, the syrup industry is on alert. Is this a challenge to be overcome with ingenuity, or a crisis in the heart of syrup country?

GUEST: Warren Mabee, director of the Queen's Institute for Energy and Environmental Policy at Queen's University

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