A working group convened to develop strategies to mitigate the impact of Canada’s new free trade agreement with the US and Mexico (CUSMA) met for the first time December 13. “Our government will continue to defend the interests of our dairy farmers and we are making sure that they are fully and fairly supported well …
BC ice wine harvest begins
BC wineries have picked approximately 135 tons of grapes for ice wine since December 5, when temperatures fell to levels required for the harvest. Twenty wineries registered an intention to produce ice wine this year with the BC Wine Authority, which regulates production. Seven plucked frozen grapes for the sweet beverage on December 5, 6 …
Ottawa invests in dairy sector
Ottawa has met criticism of its betrayal of Canada’s dairy sector in recent trade deals with fresh investment in the dairy sector. A week after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau signed CUSMA – the Canada-US-Mexico Trade Agreement, as it’s known in Canada – and Dairy Farmers of Canada penned an open letter declaring it a “dark …
Fruit co-op seeks new leadership
BC Tree Fruits Co-operative is seeking new leadership as it seeks to stay competitive in the marketplace. In late November, two years after Stan Swales took the helm CEO, the co-op posted an ad for his replacement as well as a new CFO to replace Warren Everton, who joined the co-op in February 2013. The …
Vineyard deals
While all signs point to record grape harvests in BC and further south along the West Coast of the US, demand for Okanagan vineyard land continues. Farm Credit Canada highlighted the phenomenon in its annual report on farmland values earlier this year, with FCC senior relationship manager Amos Rossworm noting that purchases were driven by …
Ag waste reg “nearly” done
ABBOTSFORD – The BC Ministry of Environment plans to implement the new agricultural waste control regulation over several years, the ministry’s clean technologies director Chris Jenkins and hazardous waste senior policy specialist Mike Schwalb told the Mainland Milk Producers Association at its fall meeting in Abbotsford, October 24. Review of the regulation, originally adopted in 1992 …