A diligent divestment strategy has seen BC Tree Fruits Cooperative sell close to $40 million in real estate since 2020. The latest deal saw the co-op sell its warehouse at 858 Ellis Street to Mission Group, a development company based in Kelowna, for $23.8 million. The sale was announced in mid-December, nearly eight months after …
CROPS
Grape growers assess damage
Grape growers are assessing damage from a late December cold snap that hit the central and northern Okanagan Valley. “Winter temperatures in the hills surrounding Kelowna and areas to the north dipped below -27°C over the Christmas holidays,” Brad Estergaard, viticulture research technician at the Summerland Research and Development Centre told growers in a special …
BC Veg consultation ends
This week marks the end of a consultation regarding the appointment of independent members to the BC Vegetable Marketing Commission as part of a broader review of governance. The deadline for submitting written feedback as part of initial input on new rules for the election of members and independent appointees is January 13. The review …
Kootenay growers target winter deliveries
CASTLEGAR – With about eight weeks before their inaugural season of weekly produce box deliveries was complete, Skattebo Acres owners Mira Fahrenbruch and Matt McClelland decided to take on a new challenge by launching weekly winter boxes. But space was a bit of an issue. “You can’t just till another 100-foot bed,” says Fahrenbruch. To …
Christmas sales on track
Christmas greenery was in strong demand and ample supply this week, despite some challenges shipping product to market in late November. “The actual interest in Christmas products at the retail level, it was probably one of the strongest years we’ve seen in many years,” says Stan Vander Waal, president of Rainbow Greenhouses Inc. in Chilliwack. …
Growers cool to ice wine
The wine won’t be ready for Christmas, but grape growers picked the first grapes for this year’s ice wine harvest in the early hours of December 17 as temperatures fell below -10° Celsius at sites in Kelowna, Summerland and Okanagan Falls. By law, temperatures must reach -8° Celsius to allow the frozen grapes to be …