Ag minister visits Okanagan

Harsh weather drove stern words to BC agriculture minister Pam Alexis as she visited the Okanagan last week to meet with grape growers, orchardists and ranchers.

The three sectors have been hit hard in recent months and years by weather-related events. Wine Growers BC is forecasting a 54% decline in grape and wine production this year thanks to an extreme December freeze event. Fruit growers have also been impacted by extreme temperatures that have underscored the need for a recently relaunched provincial replant program.

Beef producers, for their part, are also seeing the impacts of dry conditions that have both reduced forage resources and increased the risk of wildfire.

Alexis met with grape growers and wine industry representatives on June 27, and the following day met with a delegation from the BC Fruit Growers Association where the need for a long-term replant program was emphasized as well as a closer look the supports possible through Production Insurance.

“The Minister indicated that some of the challenges were common themes from the other stops on her tour,” says a statement from the BCFGA following a meeting at Goraya Family Farms in Kelowna.

In addition to the farm visit, Alexis also visited the largest pickers’ camp in the region, Secrest Hill (formerly Loose Bay), which the Regional District of Okanagan Similkameen took over in 2020 and upgraded with $657,000 in provincial funding.

Wine Growers BC says their own requests for support last week fell on sympathetic ears.

The organization says the minister has pledged to pursue federal AgriRecovery support for the sector, but a timeline hasn’t been set for when this might come through.

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23 hours ago

It was another sell-out at the 31st annual Fort Langley Cranberry Festival on Saturday with organizers selling 5,000 pounds of locally-grown, fresh berries in less than five hours. Youth from the Fort Langley Lions Club's Young Lions program scooped, bagged and weighed several pallets' worth of cranberries. Ocean Spray donated the berries, which the public bought to benefit the community. Local grower The Bog was also selling fresh berries, having brought 2,700 pounds, which were on track to sell out by the end of the#BCAgt.

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6 days ago

There was a lot of reminiscing and appreciation of how far BC's turkey industry has come at a reception celebrating the 75th anniversary of the BC Turkey Association and the 60th anniversary of the BC Turkey Marketing Board yesterday in Abbotsford. With a slideshow of events and people over the years, guests laughed and had a lot to be thankful for. "It's an opportunity to celebrate the industry at a time of year that's known for turkey. It's a culmination of all the year's work," says Natalie Veles, executive director with BC Turkey Marketing Board.

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Love it - Deb Etsell I see you 🤩

7 days ago

BC was the sole province to see farmland values decline in the first half of this year, dropping 1.9% according to a Farm Credit Canada report released Octover 7. This represented an acceleration in value declines from last year, and contributed to a 3.9% decline in the 12 montsh ended June 30. The drop follows on a 1.7% decline last year, which Farm Credit Canada attributed to tougher times in the fruit sector. However, the mid-year report points to a broader slowdown in value growth diven by higher production costs, tighter margins and uncertainty around trade, tariffs and international markets.

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Ndp

3 weeks ago

Channels of communication remain open between the provincial and federal governments with respect to financial relief for extraordinary costs stemming from this summer's ongoing drought and wildfires, but the BC Cattlemen's Association is urging producers to register for AgriStability to position themselves for any AgriRecovery package. "Hardworking families in the ranching and agriculture sectors, who provide food for the province, need the AgriRecovery program in place as soon as possible," says BC Cattlemen's president Alex Kuchar. But the provincial election creates an unfortunate delay. "It's not fair, in any form of the word, to see all those people who have lost so much in the fires to have to wait in limbo," says BC Cattlemen's general manager Kevin Boon.

Photo | Barb Edmonson / Firefly Ranch, Clinton

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Feedback on changes to rules governing food processing in the Agricultural Land Reserve has drawn about 250 submissions. But the proposal now hangs in the balance with Premier David Eby's decision to call a snap election, which also delays discussions of assistance for farmers hit hard by this year's wildfires and historic #BCAght.

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What would you expect from the NDP, when they still had a 2 year mandate?

Ridiculous timing. We have people needing answers and have to plan for winter supplies. Fires are long past, months have gone by knowing there was going to be the need for support. Drought was written on the wall even before summer began with no snow pack. This is not new to government and they are calling for another year just as bad for 2027. I throw my hands up and wonder what else needs to be more challenging than what we've experienced over the last 6 years in BC?

250 submissions.... I'm pretty sure there are more than 250 farmers in BC