Navindra Seeram’s Maple Syrup Research Funded By Industry, NYT Questions Integrity

Photo: University of Rhode Island

India-West News Desk

KINGSTON, RI – A New York Times investigation is raising questions about a top university researcher’s close ties to the maple syrup industry — and how those ties may be influencing his scientific work.

Dr. Navindra Seeram, a well-known biomedical researcher and the current dean of the School of Pharmacy at the University of New England, has spent more than ten years studying the potential health benefits of maple syrup. He’s published over 30 studies on the topic. But many critics say there’s a problem: the line between science and promotion in his work has become too blurry.

The core concern? Dr. Seeram is being paid both to study maple syrup and to promote it, NYT says.

Much of Seeram’s work has been funded by the Quebec Maple Syrup Producers — the group that oversees most of the world’s maple syrup supply. In public talks, interviews, and videos, he’s suggested that maple syrup might help prevent or delay diseases like cancer, Alzheimer’s, and diabetes. But according to NYT, the actual science doesn’t support such claims. Most of his research uses highly concentrated maple extracts in lab tests, not actual maple syrup as people eat it.

The investigative report also found that at least a dozen of Seeram’s studies didn’t disclose their funding from the maple syrup industry. But there are emails to maple syrup officials, in which he wrote that he would “always work to find ways to promote maple products from Quebec.”

Seeram has defended his work, saying he never claimed maple syrup cures anything. He points out that he used words like “may” or “could” when discussing possible benefits. His goal, he says, isn’t to get people to eat more sugar — just to choose maple syrup over other sweeteners.

Experts told NYT that this case reveals a larger issue: how industry money can shape the direction — and the messaging and that this is especially concerning in a time when public research dollars are shrinking, and many scientists feel forced to turn to private funders to keep their labs running.

Who Is Dr. Seeram?

Dr. Seeram earned a Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of the West Indies in Jamaica and completed postdoctoral research at Michigan State University. He later worked at UCLA’s Center for Human Nutrition. He’s said his interest in plant-based medicine comes from his Caribbean background and childhood experiences with natural remedies.