THETIS ISLAND – When Elisabeth and Noah Bond bought the only vineyard on Thetis Island in 2014, they looked forward to uncorking a new phase of life in the wine industry. “We were always into food and sustainability, but really hadn’t grown food before,” says Elisabeth. “We thought it would be cool to have a …
Stabilization initiative yet to bear fruit
OLIVER – The deep black of dying plum trees stands in stark contrast to the vibrant green of the adjacent cherries in Pinder Dhaliwal’s orchard in Oliver. Yet on closer inspection, many of the cherry branches have little if any fruit and several branches are dying. The nearby peach trees have no fruit at all …
Berry growers on lookout for rose stem girdler
SALEM, OREGON – Unpredictability makes the rose stem girdler a challenging adversary, and the fact that it has set up camp to the south and east of BC is all the more concerning. The pest’s arrival in commercial berry fields in BC’s Lower Mainland is a matter of when, not if, and research south of …
Indigenous agriculture faces regulatory reality
VICTORIA – Provincial efforts to promote Indigenous food sovereignty face growing questions over how Indigenous production will fit within existing structures to protect farmland and ensure orderly marketing. In July 2023, the province announced $30 million in funding to enhance Indigenous food sovereignty. The Indigenous Food Security and Sovereignty (IFS) Fund has been disbursed through …
Southern Interior irrigators shut down
The province says it listened to local growers when it shut down forage irrigation in the Salmon River and Bessette Creek watersheds on September 8, but producers say they were blindsided. “We did not receive any direct communication from [Water, Land and Resource Stewardship] staff that this was about to happen,” says Andrea van Iterson …
ALC rejects Cowichan dike removal
BC’s Agricultural Land Commission has rejected an application by Ducks Unlimited and the Nature Trust of BC to remove 450 metres of diking within the Agricultural Land Reserve to facilitate restoration of the Cowichan Estuary on Vancouver Island. The unanimous decision, dated August 11, was made public August 26. “The Properties, in their current state, …