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Originally published:

NOVEMBER 2020
Vol. 106 Issue 11

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Stories In This Edition

Apple returns raise alarm

Ottawa urged to fulfil promises

Snow job

New government faces old issues in next term

Caught in the act

Editorial: Time for action

Back 40: Finding the perks in a pandemic world

Viewpoint: Changing times require a flexible vision

Invasive hornet nest destroyed south of Langley

Country Life in BC wins a record eight national awards

US launches investigation into blueberries

Hog producers face changes to code of practice

Growers, wineries welcome sustainability launch

Sustainability program delivers value to industry

Ag Briefs: Ag sector claims $8.5 billion economic impact

Ag Briefs: Farm worker protection funded

Ag Briefs: Autumn calf prices down

Grant programs encourage Indigenous ag projects

Range issues dominate NOLA meeting

Sidebar: BCV Cattlemen critique water intentions

BC Beef plant in Falkland ready to process this month

Winter warning

Corn trial results help make better planting decisions

Sidebar: Sweet results

New barn promises better egg production

ALR co-founder, defender embraces retirement

Seed sppliers seeing sustained demand as 2021 orders begin

Research: Breeding crops for the future means looking backwards

Straight ahead

Potatoes head for record-breaking harvest

Weather posed challenges for garlic growers

Garlic groewrs employ mixed marketing strategies

Association aims to foster collaboration

Demand boosts interest in older cider apples

Evans Farms marks a century of ranching

Farm Story: Nominees announced for seasonal awards

Bursary winner plants roots in Cawston

Provincial Winter Fair hosts live 4-H events

Woodshed: Janice Newberry bids farewell to love-sick Henderson

Where there’s a will, there’s gotta be a way

Jude’s Kitchen: Autumn Eats

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1 week ago

The Great Spallumcheen Farm & Food Festival and North Okanagan Plowing Match is happening this Sunday, September 24 from 10-3 at Fieldstone Organics, 4851 Schubert Rd, Armstrong. The outdoor festival features tastings and a market brimming with local food and beverage vendors, a horse and tractor plowing competition and vintage farm equipment displays. ... See MoreSee Less

The Great Spallumcheen Farm & Food Festival and North Okanagan Plowing Match is happening this Sunday, September 24 from 10-3 at Fieldstone Organics, 4851 Schubert Rd, Armstrong. The outdoor festival features tastings and a market brimming with local food and beverage vendors, a horse and tractor plowing competition and vintage farm equipment displays.
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Patti 😊

2 weeks ago

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2 weeks ago

The top five issues the Canadian Centre for Food Integrity identified in a recent survey were the cost of food, inflation, the cost of energy, keeping healthy food affordable and the Canadian economy. “We are seeing that environmental concerns are not in the top 10,” says Amy Peck, manager of the Canadian Cattle Association’s public and stakeholder engagement program. “If you are concerned about being able to afford to feed your family, the environment becomes less important.” ... See MoreSee Less

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Ranchers get the backstory on public perception

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VERNON – Ranchers might be concerned about how the public sees their industry, but a producer-funded team at the Canadian Cattle Association has their back. Amy Peck, manager of the Canadian Cattle...
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2 weeks ago

BC Tree Fruit Co-op has sold its Lake Country packing house as part of its long-term plan to consolidate operations. The sale, to an undisclosed buyer, closed on August 31, 2023 for $15.8 million. ... See MoreSee Less

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Lake Country packing house sold

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BC Tree Fruit Co-op has sold its Lake Country packing house as part of its long-term plan to consolidate operations. The sale, to an undisclosed buyer, closed on August 31, 2023 for $15.8 million.
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Who bought it ffs ?

Ted Nedjelski Karen Turner

One of my first jobs was apple grading in a packing plant in Vernon

Vivian, is this where you worked?

I’d hear the company that owns the big Cannabis company that owns the green houses all around this packing plant was buying up everything around to expand. Wonder if it’s them that got it.

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2 weeks ago

The federal government has committed $1.81 million over the next three years to support the BC Poultry Association's preparation for direct participation in responses to future outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza in the province. “The persistence of the virus in wildlife and recurrence of outbreaks globally, presents additional risks during the migratory bird season in North America later in 2023,” the National Collaborating Centre for Environmental Health in Vancouver advised in July. For more, visit www.countrylifeinbc.com/ai-risk-rises-with-fall/ ... See MoreSee Less

The federal government has committed $1.81 million over the next three years to support the BC Poultry Associations preparation  for direct participation in responses to future outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza in the province. “The persistence of the virus in wildlife and recurrence of outbreaks globally, presents additional risks during the migratory bird season in North America later in 2023,” the National Collaborating Centre for Environmental Health in Vancouver advised in July. For more, visit https://www.countrylifeinbc.com/ai-risk-rises-with-fall/
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Apple returns raise alarm

Growers threaten to quit

November 1, 2020 bySarbmeet Singh & Peter Mitham

KELOWNA – Okanagan apple growers say ongoing low returns and rising input costs have pushed them to the verge of quitting the industry.

“The financial returns of apple growers have been steadily declining for the past three years,” says Pinder Dhaliwal, an apple grower in Oliver and president of the BC Fruit Growers Association. “On average, apple growers are getting 12 cents per pound for their produce. However, it cost growers 30 cents per pound. Under such a scenario, it is very difficult for the farmers to survive.”

The data shows that Ambrosia apples have been hit hardest. Returns dropped from 34 cents a pound in 2016 to only 13 cents a pound in 2019. Similarly, Spartans returned 15 cents a pound in 2016 but farmers received just 2 cents a pound in 2019.

Growers say the main reasons for declining returns are competition from Washington growers and a lack of support from retailers.

“The common practice of retailers buying apples from other countries is a major reason for the drop in prices in BC,” said Amarjit Singh Lalli, a Kelowna grower with 20 acres.

Lalli backed a late resolution at the BCFGA annual convention last winter seeking immediate, short-term financial support from the province for losses in 2019, and urging anti-dumping duties against US apples among other measures.

Competition from Washington, the largest producer of apples in North America, remains an ongoing issue.

“Apple production in British Columbia reduced to 70,300 tons in 2019 from 155,000 tons in 1964. In contrast, apple production in Washington increased to 2,746,000 [tons] in comparison to 465,000 in 1964,” says BCFGA general manager Glen Lucas

He says the Columbia River Treaty, ratified in 1964 and now being renegotiated by Canada and the US, delivered a stable supply of irrigation water to Washington State, allowing production there to expand significantly at the expense of BC growers.

Growers would like to see a renegotiated treaty compensate them for benefits that Washington growers have received under the treaty. BCFGA has asked government to consider an annual allocation in the range of $9.25 million.

Apple dumping

Dumping of apples is also a concern. Growers won an anti-dumping case against Red Delicious apples in 1995. The decision resulted in five years of duties, but those ended in 2000. However, some would like to see ongoing monitoring of imports.

“There should be proper checking at the border to avoid any dumping of apples,” says Lalli.

The low cost of imports has helped boost retailers’ margins on apples, which have increased more than 75% since 2016 to $1.48 a pound.

“It is only the producers that are facing the heat. If we look at the figures, retail returns continuously increased while growers continue to face the losses,” says Lucas.

Packing houses also have a role to play, says Lalli, one of the more than 350 growers who ship to the BC Tree Fruits Co-operative.

“Another reason behind the low returns are the expenses of packing,” he says.

BC Tree Fruits has been working to cut packing costs this year. A governance report the co-op received in February urged it to improve fruit quality, setting minimum standards rather than accepting whatever growers delivered. By accepting better fruit, it could cut handling and disposal costs, improving its margins and the returns growers receive.

This year, an incentive program reduced the volume of low-value fruit the co-op received, benefitting growers.

Better returns will improve farmers’ livelihoods, but also make farming more rewarding. This hasn’t been the case for apple growers in recent years.

Nirmal Singh, who has 14 acres of apples, says persistent low returns over the past several years have been frustrating.

“Survival is very difficult. Leave aside the profit – we are not even getting the input costs,” he says.

To raise awareness of the issue, growers have taken several steps to make their concerns heard. They’ve met with the province’s agriculture minister, most recently this past February, and on October 10 the BCFGA sold apples at 12 cents a pound at the Kelowna Farmers and Crafters Market to raise public awareness. The association called it the “BC Apples Farewell Tour,” indicating that apple growers are being forced to quit apple growing.

Apple growers believe the BC government’s contribution to agricultural support programs is the lowest in Canada, and Canada’s support level is below any other developed nation.

Talwinder Singh Bassi, a grower in Oliver, says it’s high time government made policies that put food security first.

“As farmers are facing losses, they will be forced to quit agriculture. Emphasis should be laid on selling of local food first,” he says.

A statement from the BCFGA says that producers are squeezing every penny they can to increase efficiency, and the packing industry is also seeking to improve returns to growers, but government also has a role to play. While the province has devoted significant effort to strengthening farmland protection, it also needs to protect farmers.

“On one hand, efforts and announcements are being made to save the Agriculture Land Reserve, but on the other hand, nothing substantial has been done for the growers,” says Dhaliwal. “A cash subsidy of seven cents per pound was given to [Washington] apple growers during August this year. This kind of support should also be provided to BC apple growers.”

While some growers will give up growing altogether as a result of low returns, others are looking at new crops.

“Many farmers have shifted from apples to cherries in the Okanagan Valley,” says Lalli, who is sticking with apples but replacing Red Delicious with Honeycrisp. “I am working on changing the varieties to survive and get better returns.”

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