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Originally published:

September 2018
Vol. 104 Issue 9

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Stories In This Edition

BC faces another summer of fire

Heather takes the cake

ALR report confirms agenda

Organic labelling regulations kick in September 1

Editorial: Inside information

Back Forty: Quantum change in the barn and kitchen

OpEd: Civic elections important for agriculture

Armyworm infestation hits North Okanagan

New entrants face scrutiny, but no waitlist

Surprise quota increase for dairies

Carrot field day

National apple programs focus of OK meeting

Okanagan tree fruits grab international spotlight

Farmers put food hub on wish list

Farming matters

Potato trials reflect change in consumer tastes

Veterinary partnership aimrs to improve service

Ag Brief: New public trust manager planning workshops

Ag Brief: BCAC hires new environmental programs mgr

Ag Brief: Poultry specialist joins IAF

Ag Brief: Salmon farmers hire new executive director

Ag Brief: New island agrologist

Automation good investment for nursery

Hort show offering more educational opportunities

Grant harnesses opportunities for farming

Flood management requires collaboration

Rancher goes wireless to manage irrigation

Wildfire lessons learned, but still work to be done

National park reserve consultations to resume

BC youth prevail at Western Canadian Classic

Land trust for Metro Vancouver floated again

Cawston market garden looks to future

Summer Institute plants seeds of knowledge

Cariboo farm thrives with mentorship

Research: Genetic editing stops deadline pig virus

Ploughing championship in sight

Coop rentals connect urbanites with farming

Maple Ridge consults on backyard chickens

Organic pioneers reflect on growth, changes in sector

Hooked on 4-H

Fair time

Woodshed: Sweet-talkin’ Henderson makes vacation plans

Wannabe: Here’s to the ordinary

Feast of Fields

Jude’s Kitchen: September and birthday celebrations

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1 day ago

A turkey farm in West Abbotsford is the second commercial poultry flock to tested positive for avian influenza since the initial case was reported in Enderby on April 13. CFIA announced the case May 19, but has yet to define the control zone. Ray Nickel of the BC Poultry Association says more than 50 farms are in the vicinity of the infected premises, meaning control measures — including movement controls — will have a significant impact on the industry. The supply of birds moving into the country from US hatcheries will also be affected, compounding the host of supply chain issues growers have been dealing with over the past year. A story in our June issue will provide further details. ... See MoreSee Less

A turkey farm in West Abbotsford is the second commercial poultry flock to tested positive for avian influenza since the initial case was reported in Enderby on April 13. CFIA announced the case May 19, but has yet to define the control zone. Ray Nickel of the BC Poultry Association says more than 50 farms are in the vicinity of the infected premises, meaning control measures — including movement controls — will have a significant impact on the industry. The supply of birds moving into the country from US hatcheries will also be affected, compounding the host of supply chain issues growers have been dealing with over the past year. A story in our June issue will provide further details.
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2 weeks ago

The province has extended the order requiring regulated commercial poultry operations to keep their birds indoors through June 13. Originally set to expire this Friday, the order was extended after a careful review by the province's deputy chief veterinarian. Poultry at seven premises, all but one of them backyard flocks, have tested positive for the highly pathogenic H5N1 strain of avian influenza since April 13. The order allows small-scale producers to continue pasturing their birds outdoors provided biosecurity protocols developed by the Small-Scale Meat producers Association are followed. ... See MoreSee Less

The province has extended the order requiring regulated commercial poultry operations to keep their birds indoors through June 13. Originally set to expire this Friday, the order was extended after a careful review by the provinces deputy chief veterinarian. Poultry at seven premises, all but one of them backyard flocks, have tested positive for the highly pathogenic H5N1 strain of avian influenza since April 13. The order allows small-scale producers to continue pasturing their birds outdoors provided biosecurity protocols developed by the Small-Scale Meat producers Association are followed.
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Sounds like 2 weeks to flatten the curve turning into 2 years.

USDA doing avian vax research, May 11 bio-docs to UN incl section on H5N8 w/wild bird spread. Found link to apparent pre-release on May 11 Geller Report. Good luck farmers.

2 weeks ago

Two more small flocks in BC have tested positive for highly pathogenic avian influenza. The latest cases are in Richmond and Kelowna. CFIA is in the process of determining a control zone around the property in Richmond, the first report in the Fraser Valley of the H5N1 strain of the virus among poultry. Speaking to Country Life in BC this week, federal agriculture minister Marie-Claude Bibeau said CFIA staff are working diligently to address outbreaks, and she encourages small flock owners to do the same. While commercial farms have tightened biosecurity measures, owners of small flocks have greater freedom. “Some smaller ones don’t necessarily have these measures in place,” Bibeau says. “They should also be extremely careful, because if we have a case in a backyard flock ... it could have an impact on bigger commercial installations.” ... See MoreSee Less

Two more small flocks in BC have tested positive for highly pathogenic avian influenza. The latest cases are in Richmond and Kelowna. CFIA is in the process of determining a control zone around the property in Richmond, the first report in the Fraser Valley of the H5N1 strain of the virus among poultry. Speaking to Country Life in BC this week, federal agriculture minister Marie-Claude Bibeau said CFIA staff are working diligently to address outbreaks, and she encourages small flock owners to do the same. While commercial farms have tightened biosecurity measures, owners of small flocks have greater freedom. “Some smaller ones don’t necessarily have these measures in place,” Bibeau says. “They should also be extremely careful, because if we have a case in a backyard flock ... it could have an impact on bigger commercial installations.”
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Killing our food chain. How do we know they are actually carrying a virus, look what's taking place with covid, is it real.

Ik kan niet zo goed Engels maar als ik het goed begrijp is bij jullie ook vogelgriep maar nog niet bij jullie

Any idea when this episode or bird flu might be over?

3 weeks ago

Investment Agriculture Foundation of BC welcomed its first new members in 20 years at its AGM on April 27. The BC Blueberry Council, BC Cherry Association, BC Cranberry Marketing Commission, BC Food & Beverage Association, BC Meats and Organic BC were approved as members, bringing the IAFBC’s membership to 15 farm and food organizations. IAFBC is also growing in responsibility, managing a record $8.3 million in funding from six funding agencies and developing new programs to support the agriculture sector including Farmland Advantage and Agricultural Climate Solutions. ... See MoreSee Less

Investment Agriculture Foundation of BC welcomed its first new members in 20 years at its AGM on April 27. The BC Blueberry Council, BC Cherry Association, BC Cranberry Marketing Commission, BC Food & Beverage Association, BC Meats and Organic BC were approved as members, bringing the IAFBC’s membership to 15 farm and food organizations. IAFBC is also growing in responsibility, managing a record $8.3 million in funding from six funding agencies and developing new programs to support the agriculture sector including Farmland Advantage and Agricultural Climate Solutions.
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4 weeks ago

A second BC flock has tested positive for highly pathogenic avian influenza, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and the province reported this evening, April 25. The small backyard flock of chicken and ducks near Kelowna has fewer than 100 birds and is relatively isolated. This is the second backyard flock to be suspected of high-path avian influenza in the past week. The other, on Vancouver Island, was found to be AI-free. Amanda Brittain, chief information officer with the BC Poultry Association’s emergency operations centre, says the latest case is of minimal concern to industry because there are no commercial flocks within 12km of the premises. ... See MoreSee Less

A second BC flock has tested positive for highly pathogenic avian influenza, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and the province reported this evening, April 25. The small backyard flock of chicken and ducks near Kelowna has fewer than 100 birds and is relatively isolated. This is the second backyard flock to be suspected of high-path avian influenza in the past week. The other, on Vancouver Island, was found to be AI-free. Amanda Brittain, chief information officer with the BC Poultry Association’s emergency operations centre, says the latest case is of minimal concern to industry because there are no commercial flocks within 12km of the premises.
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Organic labelling regulations kick in September 1

Warnings will be the first step in enforcement

September 5, 2018 byPeter Mitham

VERNON – The province’s new labelling regulations for organic products kick in September 1, but producers who don’t comply will face warnings before being hit with fines.

“The BC government, working with Certified Organic Associations of BC (COABC), will use a graduated enforcement approach that initially focuses on bringing businesses and individuals into compliance through education and warnings,” ministry communications staff said.

Plans for the new labelling requirements were announced in September 2016 and enacted as part of the Food and Agricultural Products Classification Act in December 2016. The new regulations require that any product sold in BC and labelled as “organic” be certified organic by a designated certifying body. COABC is an umbrella group that represents nine certifying bodies active within the province. Producers who describe their products as organic but lack the appropriate certification risk various penalties, including a $350 fine.

The enforcement regime will be complaint-driven, but details were still being worked out at the end of August.

“We have continued to work with the Ministry of Agriculture towards the enforcement of the regulation and we are all working hard to sort out details,” COABC executive director Jen Gamble said August 17.

The depth of the confusion confronting producers and those engaged in selling farm products was evident earlier this year in conversations Gamble had both at COABC’s annual general meeting in Abbotsford as well as a week later at the annual conference of the BC Association of Farmers’ Markets. Certified organic farms and processors represent approximately 40% of sales at BC farmers’ markets.

A key concern for market managers was the wording vendors would be allowed to use, and how the new labelling requirements would be enforced.

“Those specific details are still being worked out,” agriculture ministry staff told Country Life in BC at the time, declining to say whether coffee brewed from organic beans could be called organic or whether business names that include the word “organic” would need to change.

The province’s organic specialist, Emma Holmes, has not responded to requests for clarification.

While the province gave producers a generous window to prepare for the new labelling regime, including seeking certification to allow them to label their products as organic, it’s not clear how many producers took advantage of the opportunity.

According to Statistics Canada, a total of 550 BC farms claim to have organic products for sale in 2016, but just 449 were certified organic. A further 110 were in transition to organic production.

COABC’s own figures list 693 certified producers in 2016, and 748 in 2017.

Gamble says many farms that claim to be organic are close enough to achieve certification if they want, but she has no idea how many actually have done so in response to the new regulations.

“This is an almost impossible question for us to answer,” she says. “We do not have access to the reasons people are choosing certification so though our membership has increased over the last few years, we cannot attribute it directly to the new regulation.”

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