New fruit co-op discussed

The BC Fruit Growers Association (BCFGA) coordinated a meeting of former BC Tree Fruits Cooperative (BCTFC) growers September 10 to discuss the prospect of maintaining a co-operative packinghouse for the sector.

BC Tree Fruits shut its doors on July 26, leaving 290 grower families with nowhere to sell their fruit.

“A number of former BCTFC members reached out to us wanting a meeting to talk about how the BCFGA could support them through this time,” says BCFGA general manager Melissa Tesche.

Tesche says the meeting focused on looking ahead.

“We had about 40 growers and seven of our eight board members,” she says. “There was some reflection on how we got to the point of the closure, but the majority of the discussion was what can be done now.”

Many believe there is a place for a co-op in the industry.

“There was discussion of the importance of a cooperative model for smaller growers,” Tesche notes.

Scotian Gold, a grower-owned co-op in Nova Scotia that packs and markets 60% of that province’s apples following a restructuring was mentioned as a model.

“There was a sense of if other growers have gone through this, we can too,” Tesche said.

BCFGA sees its role as keeping growers informed and building support for a new co-op. (BCFGA membership was a requirement for members of BC Tree Fruits.)

“We have the largest contact list so we are in a good position to let growers know that there is a group looking at a plan,” she says. “The other piece of this is what would be determining a model look for a new cooperative, and can we help them find a consultant or an organization that could put this together for them?”

There is little expectation that BC Tree Fruits will be resurrected. Bids are currently being accepted on the business and its assets, with Kelowna-based logistics provider Novem set to acquire the co-op’s cold storage facility as part of the court-ordered disposition process.

Growers who have yet to receive a final payment from the co-op for the 2023 crop – close to $4.8 million remains owing to growers, according to court documents – will have until March 31, 2025 to repay amounts received through the federal Advanced Payments Program.

“We had a successful meeting with federal minister of Agriculture Lawrence MacAuley in Vancouver on [September 9],” Tesche says. “He has used his authorities under the Agriculture Marketing Programs Act to grant a stay of default and a six-month extension to the repayment deadline for the 2023 advances on apples.”

Growers of cherries, grapes and plums received a reprieve until December 31, 2024.