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Originally published:

SEPTEMBER 2022
Vol. 108 Issue 9

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2 days ago

BC Cattlemen’s Association members gathered in Cranbrook for their 97th AGM last week. BCCA president Werner Stump welcomed upwards of 300 ranchers as he signalled a change in tone with the association’s approach to government. “We are going to be a lot more blunt in our dealings with government as we fight for our livelihood,” Stump told his audience. The North American herd size remains down, and calf prices are expected to stay strong, says Brenna Grant from Canfax. “We could see $5.50 -$5.70 this fall for a 5(00) weight calves.” Duncan and Jane Barnett and family from Barnett Land and Livestock in 150 Mile House received the Ranch Sustainability Award, which recognized their riparian management and community involvement. From left to right, Clayton Loewen with Jane, Duncan and Lindsay Barnett.

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BC Cattlemen’s Association members gathered in Cranbrook for their 97th AGM last week. BCCA president Werner Stump welcomed upwards of 300 ranchers as he signalled a change in tone with the association’s approach to government. “We are going to be a lot more blunt in our dealings with government as we fight for our livelihood,” Stump told his audience. The North American herd size remains down, and calf prices are expected to stay strong, says Brenna Grant from Canfax. “We could see $5.50 -$5.70 this fall for a 5(00) weight calves.” Duncan and Jane Barnett and family from Barnett Land and Livestock in 150 Mile House received the Ranch Sustainability Award, which recognized their riparian management and community involvement. From left to right, Clayton Loewen with Jane, Duncan and Lindsay Barnett.

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Congratulations!!!

Congratulations!

Congratulations

Congratulations <3

Congratulations to Duncan, Jane, and all the rest of the Barnett family!

Congratulations Jane and Ducan! Sandra Andresen Hawkins

Congratulation Duncan & Jane!!

Congratulations Jane & Duncan 🥳

Congratulations Jane Trott Barnett and Duncan!!!

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3 days ago

Grapegrower Colleen Ingram, who was recognized earlier this year as the 2024 Grower of the Year by the BC Grapegrowers Association. “Given the devastation we have had over the last three years, I feel like this award should be given to the entire industry,” she says. Her story appears in the June edition of Country Life in BC, and we've also posted to our website.

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Industry champion named BC’s best grape grower

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KELOWNA – Colleen Ingram’s enthusiasm for collaboration within the BC wine industry is so great that when she was named 2024 Grower of the Year by the BC Grapegrowers Association, she wanted to sh...
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1 month ago

From orchard manager to government specialist and now executive director of the BC Fruit Growers Association, Adrian Arts brings a rare blend of hands-on farming experience and organizational leadership to an industry poised for renewal. His appointment comes at a pivotal moment for BC fruit growers, with Arts expressing enthusiasm about continuing the momentum built by his predecessor and working alongside a board that signals a generational shift in agricultural advocacy.

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Arts leads BCFGA forward

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A combination of organizational management and practical farming experience has primed the new executive director of the BC Fruit Growers Association to lead the industry forward.
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1 month ago

A public consultation is now underway on the powers and duties of the BC Milk Marketing Board. Key issues for dairy producers include transportation costs, rules governing shipments and limitations on supporting processing initiatives. Stakeholders have until May 31 to comment.

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Milk board undertakes review

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A public consultation on the powers and duties of the BC Milk Marketing Board is underway as part of a triennial review required by the British Columbia Milk Marketing Board Regulation.
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1 month ago

BC wool shipments drop sharply in 2023, according to StatsCan data released in mid-April. Local producers shipped just 5,200kg at 37¢/kg, down from 18,600kg at $1.08/kg in 2022. While many farmers now use wool on-farm or dispose of it due to low market value, innovative producers like Emily McIvor point to untapped opportunities. Read more in our Farm News Update from Country Life in BC.

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BC wool value, volume drop

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BC sheep producers shipped less wool for less in 2023, reversing strong growth a year earlier. BC producers shipped 5,200 kilograms of raw wool in 2023, according to Statistics Canada data released on...
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Cool weather improves wildfire response

Southern Interior the most active in terms of ranch impacts

It’s hard to imagine business as usual when a wildfire is nipping at your doorstep, but cows need to be fed this winter and forage needs to be cut. The fire came close but did not directly impact Clifton Ranch in Keremeos. FACEBOOK

August 31, 2022 byKate Ayers And Peter Mitham

PENTICTON – Wildfires in the area between the Okanagan and Similkameen valleys have shaped up as the biggest direct threat to BC ranchers this summer, with many still on edge after last year’s intense, wind-driven fires with lengthy perimeters.

The Keremeos Creek wildfire 21 kilometres southwest of Penticton, the largest blaze in the province outside the Northwest at 17,401 acres, was among 322 fires recorded in the Kamloops fire centre this year.

Kamloops is the most active area for wildfires this season, accounting for more than a quarter of the 1,242 reported fires. Total area burned as of deadline was just short of 97,500 acres – a fraction of the millions of acres burned in recent years.

But for Wade Clifton of Clifton Ranch, located north of Keremeos off Highway 3A, the Keremeos Creek fire was a stark reminder of the danger ranchers face each summer. While the fire kept its distance from his property, it was thanks largely to a backburn crews lit on the Olalla Creek Forest Service Road on August 11.

“We were really nervous about the ash because we thought it was going to come down on us. In the end, it never really got here,” Clifton says.

Concerted efforts to smooth relationships between provincial first-responders and ranchers have improved firefighting efforts, and Clifton praised the BC Wildfire service crews.

“They did a very good job on our end when they got here,” Clifton says of the fire crews in his area.

While a cooler season and higher moisture have helped limit fire risks this year, a more collaborative approach between landowners and BC Wildfire Service crews has also helped incident management teams keep ahead of the fires.

“The teamwork that we’re seeing between the BC Wildfire Service, ranchers, loggers, First Nations – it’s fantastic,” says Norene Parke, rancher liaison manager with the BC Cattlemen’s Association. “We haven’t had near the devastation that we had last year, for sure.”

Rancher liaisons, an initiative that debuted last year, has helped.

The first year of the program saw 13 people tapped to give rancher input to the incident management teams. But liaisons were quickly overwhelmed by the number and intensity of the fires and the sheer volume of cattle and livestock involved.

The rancher liaison for the McKay Creek fire, Parke urged BC Cattlemen’s to have a dedicated manager overseeing the program. A former superintendent for the BC Ambulance Service, she was asked to step into the role. Over the winter, she drafted a manual for rancher liaisons distributed to the 42 individuals tapped to be on standby this year in case of wildfires.

“The rancher liaisons were much better prepared in their role this year,” she says. “This year, there was a clear expectation as to what was going to happen.”

Communications have also improved, thanks in part to an app that allows ranchers and others to quickly report fires as they happen.

“They’re being reported quicker,” Parke says. “The incident management teams have actioned them quickly and they haven’t grown to any size.”

She says many ranchers report that crews are arriving within 15 minutes to extinguish the fires.

The result is that just four rancher liaisons have been activated this year, primarily in the Kamloops fire centre. The exception is for the Connell complex, a 7,000-acre fire in the Kootenays.

While this year’s fires have been less devastating, not all ranchers have been as lucky as the Cliftons. The wildfires south of Penticton have claimed residences and ranch infrastructure, one of three in the region to cause property damage.

 

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