ESCANABA — Researchers at Michigan State University’s Forestry Innovation Center in Escanaba are studying new health and commercial uses for maple sap through a multi-university One Health initiative, including Northwestern University and Montana State University.

Projects range from hydration support for cancer survivors to reducing microbial biofilms and developing alternative yeast products, all while pointing to new value-added opportunities for maple producers.

The work could help grow the U.P.’s maple industry by creating more reasons to tap the region’s abundant sugar maples and invest in processing infrastructure. With more than 80% of the U.P. covered by trees and 20 million acres of forestland across Michigan, this kind of forest research and product innovation has the potential to build on an industry that already supports more than 40,000 direct jobs and has $16.2 billion in economic output statewide, opening new economic possibilities across the region and beyond.