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September 2023
Vol. 109 Issue 9

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4 days 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 😊

6 days ago

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7 days 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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1 week 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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1 week 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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BC potato growers optimistic

March 4, 2020 byPeter Mitham

Poor weather across Canada in 2018 led to strong demand for BC potatoes as the 2019 crop rolled in, members of the BC Potato and Vegetable Growers Association heard this week.

“It had a good crop and was able to take advantage of an industry that was ready for a new crop early in the season last fall,” Kevin MacIsaac, general manager of the United Potato Growers of Canada, told growers meeting in Delta this week.

BC growers tend approximately 6,700 acres of potatoes, the majority of it in the Lower Mainland. Despite challenging rains last September, just 100 acres were left in the ground for a total harvest of 2.1 million hundredweight (cwt) in 2019. Average yield was 325 cwt per acre.

Production in BC compared favourably to the rest of the country, which saw 20,296 acres unharvested in 2019 led by Manitoba (13,000 acres) and Alberta (4,385 acres). MacIsaac said the shortfall was surprising, as 2018 was considered to be a benchmark year for losses with 18,049 acres unharvested. The back-to-back years put growers on the Prairies in a difficult position, he noted, and helped push down BC stocks.

BC had 526 cwt of potatoes in storage as of February 1, down from 654 cwt a year earlier. Of these, 388 cwt were table stock, down 16% from a year earlier. However, storage stocks of fresh potatoes were in line with the province’s five-year average.

The industry’s strong position in BC, coupled with ongoing funding for variety trials and an annual field day that holds nationwide interest, is buoying optimism among growers. A key challenge, however, are inputs.

MacIsaac noted that the coronavirus outbreak could impact the supply of products manufactured in Asia, though the exact impact has yet to be sketched out. Restrictions on the use of certain pesticides coupled with decisions in several regulatory reviews have also raised fears concerning the elimination of additional crop management tools.

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