Maple Syrup Mafia to Hockey Obsession:9 Quirky Canadian Inventions& Facts You Use Daily
Maple Syrup Mafia to Hockey Obsession: 9 Quirky Canadian Inventions & Facts You Use Daily
9 Quirky Canadian Inventions & Obsessions
Pouring pure Canadian maple syrup
The sweet stuff that runs the world
From Insulin to the Zamboni
Canada quietly invented half the things you love — and is weirdly obsessed with the rest.
Canada doesn’t just make snow and sorrys — it also gave the world basketball, life-saving medicine, and the planet’s entire supply of real maple syrup (literally). Here are 9 delightfully quirky inventions and obsessions that prove Canada is low-key running the show.
The 9 Quirky Facts
- 70% of the World’s Maple Syrup (and the “Mafia” That Guards It) – Québec alone produces 90% of Canada’s output. In 2012, thieves stole $18 million worth from the strategic reserve — the Great Maple Syrup Heist.[1]
- Invented Basketball – James Naismith, a Canadian phys-ed teacher in Massachusetts, created the game in 1891 with peach baskets.[2]
- Insulin – Saved Billions of Lives – Frederick Banting & Charles Best (Toronto, 1921) discovered injectable insulin, winning the Nobel in 1923.[3]
- The Zamboni Ice Resurfacer – Frank Zamboni (Canadian roots) perfected the machine in 1949; every NHL rink still uses his design.[4]
- The World’s Largest Moose Population – Over 1 million moose roam Canada; Newfoundland’s alone outnumber people 5:1 in some areas.[5]
- Poutine: Fries + Cheese Curds + Gravy = National Dish – Born in rural Québec in the late 1950s, now served everywhere from Michelin restaurants to McDonald’s.[6]
- Hockey Is Basically Religion – 1 in 11 Canadians played organized hockey last year; Saturday night is unofficially sacred.[7]
- The Hawaiian Pizza (Yes, Really) – Greek-Canadian Sam Panopoulos in Chatham, Ontario, put pineapple on pizza in 1962.[8]
- Invented the Walkie-Talkie – Donald Hings (BC) created the first portable two-way radio for pilots in 1937.[9]
Bonus 2025 Fun Fact
Canada’s strategic maple syrup reserve currently holds 130 million pounds — enough to fill 52 Olympic swimming pools.