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FEBRUARY 2023
Vol. 108 Issue 2

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6 days ago

Farmland Advantage is receiving a $445,000 grant from the federal government. The program, the “brainchild” of Invermere cattle rancher Dave Zehnder, provides compensation to farmers for their conservation efforts to protect BC’s grasslands, riparian areas and wildlife habitat. The funding from Environment and Climate Change Canada under the Species at Risk Partnerships on Agricultural Lands (SARPAL) and Priority Places programs, will be administered by the Investment Agriculture Foundation of BC. Rewarding farmers for enhancing riparian areas appeared in our March 2022 edition and you can view it at ... See MoreSee Less

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Rewarding farmers for enhancing riparian areas

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INVERMERE – Farmers and ranchers in the Columbia Valley will continue to see rewards for taking action to conserve and enhance important riparian areas on their farms. The Windermere District Farmer...
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2 weeks ago

A standing-room only crowd of more than 250 people attended a public hearing the Agricultural Land Commission hosted in Langley Monday night regarding a proposal to include 305 acres controlled by the federal government in the Agricultural Land Reserve. More than 76,000 people have signed an online petition asking municipal and provincial governments to protect the land from development, and for the federal government to grant a long-term lease to the Heppells. Read more in this morning's Farm News Update from Country Life in BC. conta.cc/3XYXw6k ... See MoreSee Less

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Your weekly farm news update

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The agricultural news source in British Columbia since 1915 January 25 2023 Surrey ALR inclusion cheered A standing-room only crowd of more than 250 people attended a public hearing the Agricultural L
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Mike Manion Pitt Meadows City Councillor

2 months ago

Christmas tree growers in BC are seeing strong demand this season and prices remain comparable to last year. But the number of tree farms has decreased dramatically over the past five years and the province will increasingly need to look elsewhere if it wants to meet local demand. More in this week's Farm News Update from Country Life in BC. ... See MoreSee Less

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Christmas trees in demand

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Christmas tree growers in BC are seeing strong demand, with high quality trees making it to market. “The market is good. We’ll probably outdo last year and last year was one of our best years…
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2 months ago

Another four poultry flocks in the Fraser Valley have tested positive for avian influenza over the weekend -- 15 in the last week alone. There are 60 farms currently under quarantine in BC, more than any other province in Canada and three times that of Alberta, which ranks second. Officials maintain the virus is being spread by dust and groundwater and not farm-to-farm transmission. No farms in the Interior have tested positive this fall. ... See MoreSee Less

Another four poultry flocks in the Fraser Valley have tested positive for avian influenza over the weekend -- 15 in the last week alone. There are 60 farms currently under quarantine in BC, more than any other province in Canada and three times that of Alberta, which ranks second. Officials maintain the virus is being spread by dust and groundwater and not farm-to-farm transmission. No farms in the Interior have tested positive this fall.
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Avian influenza virus can be killed by chlorine at no higher a concentration than is present in drinking water, so unless farms are using untreated groundwater in their barns I don't see how it could be a source of transmission. www.researchgate.net/publication/5594208_Chlorine_Inactivation_of_Highly_Pathogenic_Avian_Influen...

2 months ago

In a surprise move, Lana Popham -- hailed at the recent BC Dairy Industry Conference as a key ally of the agriculture sector -- has been replaced by Abbotsford-Mission MLA Pam Alexis as part of a cabinet overhaul today by new BC premier David Eby. Popham will now oversee Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport. The two ministers worked closely together following the atmospheric river events last fall. ... See MoreSee Less

In a surprise move, Lana Popham -- hailed at the recent BC Dairy Industry Conference as a key ally of the agriculture sector -- has been replaced by Abbotsford-Mission MLA Pam Alexis as part of a cabinet overhaul today by new BC premier David Eby. Popham will now oversee Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport. The two ministers worked closely together following the atmospheric river events last fall.Image attachment
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Goes to show how far-removed our current government is from the agricultural sector. To put someone in this position who has no farming background is a slap in the face to all of our hard-working producers.

Going to be a heck of a learning curve. Helping the agricultural community recover from the biggest natural disasters in history, handling the avian influenza outbreak that is threatening our poultry industry, dealing with a crisis in meat processing, managing ongoing threats from climate change, supporting producers who are facing unprecedented inflation in an industry with very slim margins to begin with..... to name a few of the challenges our new Minister will have to face all with one of the lowest budgets of any ministry. I wish her the best of luck but I hope she's got a lot of support around her.

Best of wishes in your new position

Congrats to Pam, cool to see a Fraser Valley based ag minister but also so sad to see Lana reassigned . I have no doubt she will do an amazing job in her new role.

Will be missed by #meiernation

Bryce Rashleigh

Nooooooo!

Lana did a shit job and now we have a minister with no farming background at all. Aren’t we lucky..

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Avian influenza spreads

FILE PHOTO / SHUTTERSTOCK

November 30, 2022 byPeter Mitham

Sixteen commercial poultry farms in the Fraser Valley have tested positive for highly pathogenic avian influenza over the past week, according to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

The cases bring the total number of properties affected in the province to 59, with commercial operations now the focus of concern despite ongoing government outreach aimed at small-lot growers.

Of the 30 commercial premises that have tested positive over the past two weeks, the majority fall within one of five control zones, which include four in Abbotsford and one in Chilliwack.

The industry remains at its most vigilant red biosecurity alert level, credited with limiting cases at commercial operations, but CFIA staff say farm-to-farm transmission is a risk.

“The high concentration of poultry operations in the Fraser Valley does present an increased risk for farm-to-farm spread,” CFIA told Country Life in BC in a statement.

CFIA is analyzing samples to help identify any movement of the virus between premises.

This year’s global outbreak is the worst on record since the highly pathogenic H5N1 strain of the virus that causes avian influenza was first identified in 1996. It is notable not just for the scale of deaths – more than 50 million birds, including more than 500,000 in BC – but the fact it’s impacted more than 80 wild and domestic species.

Besides domestic chickens and turkeys, ducks as well as pheasants and pea fowl have taken sick – species never before impacted in BC.

The province maintains that migratory birds are responsible for the virus’s introduction into domestic flocks. The province’s to vet has issued orders requiring commercial flocks be kept indoors.

To date, 33 wild birds – primarily eagles, owls, and waterfowl – have tested positive for H5N1 in BC. This is the least of any province in Canada. Three red fox and one skunk have also tested positive, according to the federal government’s avian influenza dashboard.

While the disease has decimated certain wild bird populations in Europe, CFIA staff indicate wildlife mortalities in BC have been low relative to commercial flocks.

“Avian influenza is enzootic in migratory wild birds and they are generally less susceptible to the disease than domestic poultry,” CFIA told Country Life in BC. “Wild birds can shed this virus without significant mortality levels being observed.”

CFIA did not indicate plans to escalate measures to fight this year’s outbreak. It continues, in partnership with industry, to urge producers “to follow strict biosecurity practices as a critical element in reducing the risk of spread.”

The province is hosting webinars for small-lot growers on November 30 and December 5 to help them address the threat of avian influenza on their farms.

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