BC Tree CEO on leave

BC Tree Fruits Cooperative CEO Warren Sarafinchan took an extended leave of absence, effective August 5, following a battle with COVID-19 and the toll four years of transformation at the co-op has taken.

“This decision comes as he focuses on recovering from COVID and takes some much-needed time to rest with his family,” co-op chair Andre Scheepers says in an letter to staff and members. “He is also taking that time to consider his future with BC Tree Fruits Cooperative.”

Co-op chief financial officer Doug Pankiw will double as acting CEO in Sarafinchan’s absence.

Sarafinchan was hired as CEO in the fall of 2019, the co-op’s fourth hire for the position in eight years. Grower returns have been low for the last several years and Sarafinchan has worked to introduce minimum pricing, sell off assets and make changes to the board of directors.

Yet a number of top growers have left the co-op, seeking better returns from independent packing houses.

A decision last year to not build a proposed state-of-the-art plant in Kelowna and instead renovate and expand the Oliver packing house, led to a special general meeting in November 2022. Grower members forced the meeting over concerns they had not been adequately consulted.

Among the special resolutions presented at the meeting, growers proposed removing the entire board of directors. The vote was 59% in favour, short of the two-thirds majority required.

The co-op broke ground on the renovation and expansion of the Oliver plant earlier this year, with a public ceremony marking the event taking place July 5.

BC Fruit Growers Association president Peter Simonsen says he wishes Sarafinchan well in his return to health.