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Originally published:

FEBRUARY 2020
Vol. 106 Issue 2

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Stories In This Edition

Perfect pruning

Open ears

Tough talk on animal activists

Peace, Cariboo top 2019 farm and ranch sales

Duckin’ a snow storm

Editorial: Change of heart

Back 40: Retirement is inevitable but less so for farmers

Viewpoint: Leading a decade of growth in organics

Banding together to attract domestic workers

Ag council helps avert seasonal worker delays

Dairy producers urged to polish public image

Snow day

New certification program launched for plant exporters

New executive director for COABC appointed

Ag Briefs: BC dairies push back on Class 7 proposal

Ag Briefs: Agri Innovation projects announced

Ag Briefs: Province selects Ruckle managers

Partnerships facilitate Langley learning farm

Feed BC program good in theory but has limitations

Opportunities and challenges

Halal demand rising in Western Canada

Trespass incident boosts public awareness

Sheep killings raise concerns in Lower Mainland

Pruning priorities different for FV grapegrowers

Farm plans offer new opportunities for rnachers

Number crunchers

Ranchers, foresters learn to share the road

Raise your claves so buyers play with a full deck

Boosting calf health starts before birth

Reseeding part of range restoration

Capacity crowd at Interior soils conference

Global blueberry growers look at substrate potential

Saving the peatlands

Blueberry breeding focuses on quality, exports

Research promises to help control SWD

Novel cherry trellising system saves money

Research: The effects of separating cows and calves

Farm News: Buckling down for winter conference season

Black walnuts are an option for water-logged land

Researcher provides deworming tips for sheep

Wasabi a hot option for wellness products

Technology key to tree fruit industry’s future

New broiler barn boosts comfort for birds

Woodshed Chronicles: Junkyard Frank’s plan is played to perfection

Give your marriage a relationship check-up

Bursary fund welcomes applications

Apple of your eye

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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.

#BCAg
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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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Farm plans offer new opportunities for ranchers

NOLA education day sheds light on EFPs, calf health, ecosystems

February 1, 2020 byTom Walker

VERNON – Winter weather chilled the turnout for the annual North Okanagan Livestock Association educational seminar in Vernon on January 15.

Just half the 80 people registered made it to the event.

“Some of our sponsors were not even able to make it,” says NOLA president Lani French. “The -20 temperatures and the poor road conditions kept people at home.”

Nevertheless, the show went on.

A networking lunch was followed by a screening of the film “Guardians of the Grasslands,” a short documentary on the vital role of cattle in conserving the ecosystem of the Prairies. The region’s grasslands are one of the most endangered ecosystems on earth, even more so than the Amazon rainforest. The film explains the importance of grazing, originally by bison and now by cattle, in sustaining the landscape’s health. It also explained the massive carbon sequestration role the grasslands provide.

While the film was shot in Alberta as a joint project between Ducks Unlimited, the Nature Conservancy of Canada and the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association, French says the message also applies to BC grasslands.

“It’s a powerful film,” she says, tearing up.

Calf survival

Jeanette Perry from White Valley Veterinary Services in Lumby spoke about improving calf survival at birth, drawing on her experience teaching cattle medicine in Australia.

“Birth is a make or break time for cattle,” says Perry. “More than half of calf deaths occur in the first 24 hours.”

Environmental Farm Plan (EFP) regional advisor Pete Spencer gave an update on the program.

“Winter is the best time to get your environmental farm plan done,” he says. “Come April 1, when the program funding opens up, things get pretty crazy.”

Spencer is looking for new and interesting projects to fund this year. He notes there are 60 different areas the program supports.

“You can qualify for up to $70,000 cost-shared funding to improve your ranch sustainability,” he says.

Changes to the criteria for irrigation funding kept Spencer busy this past year.

“They have really opened up the requirements under irrigation,” says Spencer, noting that more commodities will be able to apply this year. “They have changed the awarding of project funding to a merit-based system.”

Applications are assessed on how using less water helps the environment.

“If you are saving water from the Kettle River, for example, you will be considered before someone who gets their water from a purveyor,” he explains.

Pivot irrigation systems have been a popular projects with program participants.

“Even though they are expensive, they save water,” says Spencer. “Pivots are a benefit, particularly when water is becoming more expensive and even running out in some areas.”

He adds that he is looking to work with BC Agriculture and Food Climate Action Initiative staff to develop a cost-benefit analysis for installing pivot systems.

Spencer points out that EFP pays producers for management plan development, including irrigation and nutrient management plans.

AEM Code support

EFP has a new work plan to support the Code of Practice for Agricultural Environmental Management (AEM Code) introduced last year, Spencer says. There is a basic amount of monitoring that is required for all operations that apply nutrients. Three high-risk locations require additional measures – areas with high rainfall, areas over vulnerable aquifers and phosphorus-affected areas.

“I don’t think the new regs are actually all that bad,” says Spencer. “I promote soil sampling anyway and the AEM Code says it must be done every three years.”

A summary document prepared by the BC Cattlemen’s Association is an excellent resource, Spencer notes. (It is available for viewing and download at [http://bit.do/BCCA-AEMCoP].)

The new dam safety plans the province requires can be costly if the dam is of significant size and potential consequence. Spencer recalls a rancher group that applied for EFP funding to assist with the development of a dam safety plan for their jointly owned dam.

“They shared the cost and, with funding, it was nearly free for them,” he says.

Shawn Wilson, a third-generation producer from Alberta, discussed some of the challenges in cattle industry markets as well as tips for a producer to increase the value of their animals at sale time.

“The best way to illustrate the cattle market is to look at a picture of a roller coaster,” says Wilson. “You need to know what works for your ranch program and have a plan.”

French notes there will not be an education seminar in 2021. NOLA will be focusing its energies on hosting the BC Cattlemen’s convention in Vernon.

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