The new dairy year will see BC’s dairy sector welcome five new producers.
Results of this year’s new entrant selection process were announced July 24 by the BC Milk Marketing Board, which extended congratulations to conventional candidates Frederick Fooks,
Amy Gibbs, Dwayne (Marc) & Kari Goossen and Joshua Telford, as well as organic candidate Ian Lennox.
The successful candidates are located in both the Fraser Valley and the Southern Interior.
The five new producers were chosen following interviews with a shortlist of nine conventional candidates and five organic candidates.
A total of 29 applications for conventional production and seven applications for organic production were received by the initial deadline of February 10.
This year’s tally of applications is down from 30 applications for conventional production last year and 33 applications two years ago. The previous organic selection process, in 2023, saw 10 applicants.
The selected producers will have until December 31, 2026, to start production in order to meet the requirements for receiving incentive quota from BC Milk.
Conventional producers receive 15 kg of Continuous Daily Quota (CDQ) at startup, plus up to 8 kg of matching CDQ provided on a 1:1 ratio basis during the 10 years of the program.
New entrants under the organic stream will receive an initial 19.5 kg Specialty Continuous Daily Quota (SCDQ) as well as up to 8 kg of matching SCDQ on a 1:1 ratio over the 10-year program. Additionally, organic candidates receive a 30% organic bonus on first-year matching quota purchases, bringing their total potential quota to 40.3 kg.
On the rebound