Kind of. It's not a national security strategic reserve but rather an economic one. It helps ensure a stable supply so that prices don't skyrocket, particularly as the annual harvest of maple syrup is very hard to predict: it depends heavily on freeze/thaw patterns in the spring.
The argument, I think, is that if prices are unreliable, customers are turned off from the product and develop new habits that exclude maple syrup. Without it, maple syrup prices would have been ridiculous these past couple years.
It also acts as a buyer when prices are very low (gotta fill the reserve somehow) which props up prices at oversupply times, keeping the industry stable.
> The Swiss government has delayed a decision to scrap the nation’s 15,000-tonne strategic coffee bean reserve after the proposal prompted public and industry jitters. Here’s what you need to know about the issue and why it's been brewing for months.
... though, that's more a strategic reserve.
> Self-reliance is an integral part of Swiss history and economic policy, and the country stocks food, medicines and oil in large quantities to cope with possible shortages.
The three-month coffee reserve aims to insulate the land-locked nation from supply disruptions, historically driven by concerns about global conflict although now facing the more immediate threat of global warming and low water levels on the River Rhine shipping route.
Fairly similar, although the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is more about keeping the United States economy stable in the midst of global supply disruptions (particularly discouraging foreign nations who might like to pressure the United States with embargoes), while the FPAQ maple syrup reserve is more about keeping the maple syrup industry financially stable from year to year.
It does seem like a funny thing to do but not when you think about it. Its a commodity. It has a price. Canada controls much of the market. It lasts a long time. Why wouldn’t they have a reserve?
It also seems very rich 21st century to not see immediate value in storing large quantities of food. Surplus is something we take for granted.
