ALC members appointed

The closing days of the old year heralded a host of appointments to the Agricultural Land Commission.

Commissioners Erin Carlson (Summerland), Jolleen Dick (Port Alberni), Wayne Harris (Creston) and Danna O’Donnell completed terms on December 19.

A ministerial order signed by agriculture minister Lana Popham on December 16 reappointed Carlson and Harris for three-year terms while O’Donnell was appointed for a two-year term.

Dick was replaced by fellow Vancouver Island farmer Jan Slomp (Courtenay), who was appointed for a two-year term ending December 19, 2026.

Commissioners Robert Haywood-Farmer (Savona) and Brenda Schoepp (Victoria) completed their terms on New Year’s Day, and a second ministerial order reappointed Schoepp for a two-year term ending January 1, 2027, while Haywood-Farmer will serve three years until January 1, 2028.

Keeping ahead of the curve, Popham extended the term of Andrew Adams (Prince George) through December 1, 2026, while Joseph Deuling (Lumby) was appointed for a three year-term ending December 31, 2027.

Sitting commissioner Holger Schwichtenberg (Agassiz), whose term was set to expire in March will now serve an additional four years through March 12, 2029.

Commissioner Karen McKean will serve an additional three years, being reappointed through April 30, 2028.

The latest appointments follow Popham’s order on November 25 rescinding the appointment of Lynn Lashuk (Lake Country). Lashuk, along with Chad Stump of the ?Esdilagh First Nation, were appointed to two-year terms with the commission beginning November 1 by Popham’s predecessor Pam Alexis.

November 1 also saw Jeff McCallum of Nanaimo take his seat as a commissioner for a two-year term following an August 1 order by Alexis.

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1 week ago

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2 weeks ago

The Jura Ranch near Princeton sold for nearly $5.3 million on May 12, the largest online ranch sale in BC in months, according to CLHBid.com, which handled the sale. The buyer was not named. Formerly owned by Rob and Kelly Lamoureux, which developed the successful Jura Grassfed brand, the ranch includes 2,625 deeded acres and a grazing licence totalling 83,698 acres. Originally offered at $4.2 million, the competitive bidding process delivered a higher value than the current market would suggest. Farm Credit Canada’s latest farmland value survey pointed to 1.7% decline in BC last year, which observers have attributed to tight margins and uncertainties related to Crown tenure.

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I sure hope it remains as farm land rather than a wind or solar installation.

Great grassland

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Uncertainty about crown land, aka native land grabs and unceded land claims being tossed around like it wasn't meant to destabilize the country?

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Foreign land buyers hollow out Dunster

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DUNSTER – Purchases of swathes of farmland in the Robson Valley by wealthy American businessmen have some in BC demanding restrictions on foreign and corporate ownership of agricultural land.

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This is a serious issue in Dunster and one that has impacts for wildlife and human neighbours.

Representatives from Quail's Gate Winery Estate Winery in West Kelowna were panellists during the Okanagan Cultivates event held at Okanagan College's Kelowna campus on May 7. The college has been hosting events like this to help elevate conversations in the community about what's grown locally and its impact on the region's food, wine and tourism industry. The Quail's Gate panel, which included Ben Stewart, discussed the long history of grape growing and winemaking in front of a large crowd who came to listen, learn and taste products from a number of local wineries and restaurants. A new $48.8M food, wine and tourism centre is now under construction at the college to open in fall 2027. The building will have modern food labs, a student-led restaurant and café and specialized training spaces for culinary, viticultu#BCAgd tourism studies.

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