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Originally published:

February 2019
Vol. 105 Issue 2

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Stories In This Edition

Joy Ride!

Critics urge licence delay

ALR committee files report

Cannabis drives drop in Delta farm assessments

Editorial: Party and province

Back Forty: You can’t get apps on that

Viewpoint: Annual assessments a chance to take stock

Staff reorganization targets leaner fruit co-op

Preliminary hearing in high-profile poultry abuse

Growers pin hopes on Columbia River update

Survey keeps national park reserve in spotlight

Political engagement headlines dairy meeting

World milk prices take blame for shifting returns

Patience is a virtue

Ag Briefs: Sasaki appointed new head of chicken board

Ag Briefs: Ottawa invests in dairy sector

AB: Piece rates, taxes increase

AB: AITC focuses on growth

Capital Region considers compensation cuts

Letters: Protect farmland from cannabis production

Letters: Dog owners need to accept responsibility

Letters: The beef about climate change

Cadillac’ of aviaries will reduce labour costs

Berry growers face new import requirements

Open house reveals secrets of diagnostics lab

Cannabis propagation industry sprouting in BC

Sidebar: Deep roots

FCC targets women with new business program

Agreement sets stage for fish farm phase-out

Grazing, forage and water top list at town hall

Ranchers reassured regarding bovine TB cases

Digging into soil nutrition at education day

Microgreen grower attracts far-flung following

Science of cannabis takes centre stage

Blueberry growers hone use of box liners

Ostrich industry takes flight with big plans

Tunnels boost fruit quality, add to berry season

Big bucks being spent to protect bee health

Sidebar: Province boosts funding

Mystery bee disease studied

Direct-marketing opportunities have potential

Research: Preventing soft scald in apples

Regional food system is the new focus of group’s efforts

Wannabe: Growers deserve our love

Woodshed: A performance Kenneth can’t afford to miss

Jude’s Kitchen: Happy new year, my sweet Valentine

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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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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 Duncan and Jane Trott Barnett Well deserved recognition

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

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Congratulations Jane and Ducan! Sandra Andresen Hawkins

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1 month 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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2 months 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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2 months 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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Microgreen grower attracts far-flung following

Salmon Arm hydroponic grower harvests sales in Calgary

January 29, 2019 byJackie Pearase

SALMON ARM – A different kind of hydroponic grow-op has set up shop in the Shuswap, looking to meet the demand for leafy greens.

Living Leaf Growers started producing microgreens in a corner of Salmon Arm’s Westgate Public Market late last year, planting its first crop in October and harvesting its third in early January.

The 2,500-square-foot space has four sections, each with seven rows of hydroponic growing rafts reaching to the ceiling. Owner Karen Dow expects to have 28,000 plugs of produce – arugula, cabbage, kale, pea shoots, basil, lettuces and more – growing when the facility is fully operational.

“We’re hoping within two to three months we’ll be at full capacity for harvesting upstairs and down,” says Dow. “When the full system is going, we’ll be harvesting 7,000 heads of produce a week.”

In addition, PVC piping along one wall is ready to receive 700 ever-bearing strawberry plants set to arrive in March.

Growth has been steady. The first planting resulted in nearly 50 bags of microgreens, and the second crop yielded 80. Dow and a crew of three picked another 130 bags in January.

Dow is an accomplished businesswoman, but has no gardening experience. She hired Wolf Wesle from Green Croft Gardens in Grindrod to help with the initial set-up and deal with the inevitable snags along the way, like a leaky raft system.

“We have to go to a different raft system, which is really what we should have done from the beginning. That was a mistake but that’s all part of it,” she says. “So, yeah, we’ve had a lot of challenges in there, but they’re fun.”

Wesle combines formal training in hydroponics with more than three decades of hands-on organic experience in his consulting work for Dow.

He is now installing a more eco-friendly channel system to replace the styrofoam rafts for growing, and hemp plugs are replacing Rockwool for starting seedlings. The microgreens themselves are grown on fully biodegradable hemp matts.

Organic seeds, fertilizers and disease and pest management practices are used as much as possible. In fact, small plastic-covered jars containing apple cider vinegar is a simple and common pest control method.

Wesle says adding an organic fertilizer to the mix caused issues that required some trial and error to resolve but has resulted in better colour and texture.

Wesle’s experience tells him there will be a few more issues to deal with before things are running smoothly.

“We currently operate at about 15% capacity but hope to have all kinks ironed out over the next six to 12 months,” he says.

Wesle has agreed to stay on until his farm’s growing season starts in April, and he’ll likely continue as a part-time consultant as required.

Dow sold her initial crops at $1 per bag to people registered through Westgate’s website. Customers provided valuable feedback.

Trials are also helping determine the best crops to grow for the bags of microgreens and mixed lettuce she’s selling.

Dow says she will have no problem selling the produce, with interest already coming from food delivery services in Kelowna, Vernon, Kamloops and even Calgary.

“They like the produce because it’s year-round, it’s organic, it’s fresh; we cut it, you get it,” she notes.

Dow is mulling other options for commercial sales locally but is leaning toward keeping it unique to the Salmon Arm market.

“Right now I’m on the fence about whether I sell to Askew’s and DeMille’s and everybody,” she says mentioning a popular local grocer and farm market.

The hydroponic produce is grown with few inputs but doesn’t qualify for organic certification, which is limited to soil-based production systems. Dow would like to see organic certification criteria amended to accommodate hydroponics.

“I think you’ll see in the next year or two a big change with how hydroponics is accepted,” she says. “It’s a battle coming down and we’d definitely jump on the train on that one.”

 

 

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