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Current Issue:

MAY 2025
Vol. 111 Issue 4

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2 weeks 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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3 weeks 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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3 weeks 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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3 weeks ago

Eric Feehely and Miho Shinbo are growing 30+ crops on 2.5 acres in Vernon. Writer Myrna Stark Leader takes a look at how Silverstar Veggies is balancing CSA programs, farmers markets and restaurant sales while planning smart expansions in challenging economic times in Market farm works smarter, not harder.

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Market farm works smarter, not harder

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VERNON – Silverstar Veggies, a five-year-old mixed vegetable and herb farm in Vernon, thrives on passion and innovative ideas. A former watersport and adventure sport instructor…
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1 month ago

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Plant health centre breaks ground

Participants at the ground breaking ceremony. From left to right: Joseph Seward, W̱JOŁEŁP (Tsartlip) Councillor; Duncan Retson, Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Public Services and Procurement Canada; Josh Girman, Manager of Indigenous Relations, PCL Construction; Diane Allan, Vice-President of Science, Canadian Food Inspection Agency; Rachid El Hafid, Director of Summerland Research and Development Centre, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. CFIA PHOTO

September 28, 2022 bySandra Tretick

Ground has broken in North Saanich on a new Centre for Plant Health, Canada’s first line of defence against plant diseases.

Representatives of the federal government and local First Nations gathered on site September 22 to mark the start of construction on a new diagnostic and research facility, operated by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA).

“The new facility is a first step to providing CFIA scientists and collaborators with state-of-the-art amenities and modernized tools to advance plant science while supporting Canadian agriculture, global trade and economic growth,” CFIA says in a press release announcing the project.

Slated for closure in 2012, an outcry led by local MP Elizabeth May saw the centre saved. In 2018, Ottawa pledged $80 million for upgrades as part of a broader $2.8 billion Laboratories Canada strategy.

The centre has served as a plant quarantine station since 1965, and came under the jurisdiction of the CFIA in 1997. One of 13 research laboratories CFIA operates located across Canada, it is where fruit-bearing trees, grapevines and small fruits imported into Canada are quarantined and tested for viruses, pathogens and other plant diseases that could devastate these sectors.

The location is isolated enough from commercial growers to prevent a possible spread of infection and the climate is suited for growing all of Canada’s fruit crops and ornamental plants.

Most of the buildings were built between 1912 and 1961. A modern, purpose-built greenhouse and header house are planned, parts of the facility will be upgraded while some buildings will eventually be demolished.

The design phase is currently wrapping up and a community engagement plan is in the works. The site will tap geothermal capacity for a ground-source heat pump. Coast Salish stories will be incorporated into the design and artwork of the facility, which sits on 100 acres in the Agricultural Land Reserve overlooking the Salish Sea.

Construction, managed by PCL Lab Solutions, will begin this fall on receipt of a building permit by the District of North Saanich. The lab is scheduled to open in 2025.

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