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FEBRUARY 2023
Vol. 108 Issue 2

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6 days ago

Farmland Advantage is receiving a $445,000 grant from the federal government. The program, the “brainchild” of Invermere cattle rancher Dave Zehnder, provides compensation to farmers for their conservation efforts to protect BC’s grasslands, riparian areas and wildlife habitat. The funding from Environment and Climate Change Canada under the Species at Risk Partnerships on Agricultural Lands (SARPAL) and Priority Places programs, will be administered by the Investment Agriculture Foundation of BC. Rewarding farmers for enhancing riparian areas appeared in our March 2022 edition and you can view it at ... See MoreSee Less

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Rewarding farmers for enhancing riparian areas

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INVERMERE – Farmers and ranchers in the Columbia Valley will continue to see rewards for taking action to conserve and enhance important riparian areas on their farms. The Windermere District Farmer...
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2 weeks ago

A standing-room only crowd of more than 250 people attended a public hearing the Agricultural Land Commission hosted in Langley Monday night regarding a proposal to include 305 acres controlled by the federal government in the Agricultural Land Reserve. More than 76,000 people have signed an online petition asking municipal and provincial governments to protect the land from development, and for the federal government to grant a long-term lease to the Heppells. Read more in this morning's Farm News Update from Country Life in BC. conta.cc/3XYXw6k ... See MoreSee Less

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Your weekly farm news update

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The agricultural news source in British Columbia since 1915 January 25 2023 Surrey ALR inclusion cheered A standing-room only crowd of more than 250 people attended a public hearing the Agricultural L
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Mike Manion Pitt Meadows City Councillor

2 months ago

Christmas tree growers in BC are seeing strong demand this season and prices remain comparable to last year. But the number of tree farms has decreased dramatically over the past five years and the province will increasingly need to look elsewhere if it wants to meet local demand. More in this week's Farm News Update from Country Life in BC. ... See MoreSee Less

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Christmas trees in demand

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Christmas tree growers in BC are seeing strong demand, with high quality trees making it to market. “The market is good. We’ll probably outdo last year and last year was one of our best years…
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2 months ago

Another four poultry flocks in the Fraser Valley have tested positive for avian influenza over the weekend -- 15 in the last week alone. There are 60 farms currently under quarantine in BC, more than any other province in Canada and three times that of Alberta, which ranks second. Officials maintain the virus is being spread by dust and groundwater and not farm-to-farm transmission. No farms in the Interior have tested positive this fall. ... See MoreSee Less

Another four poultry flocks in the Fraser Valley have tested positive for avian influenza over the weekend -- 15 in the last week alone. There are 60 farms currently under quarantine in BC, more than any other province in Canada and three times that of Alberta, which ranks second. Officials maintain the virus is being spread by dust and groundwater and not farm-to-farm transmission. No farms in the Interior have tested positive this fall.
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Avian influenza virus can be killed by chlorine at no higher a concentration than is present in drinking water, so unless farms are using untreated groundwater in their barns I don't see how it could be a source of transmission. www.researchgate.net/publication/5594208_Chlorine_Inactivation_of_Highly_Pathogenic_Avian_Influen...

2 months ago

In a surprise move, Lana Popham -- hailed at the recent BC Dairy Industry Conference as a key ally of the agriculture sector -- has been replaced by Abbotsford-Mission MLA Pam Alexis as part of a cabinet overhaul today by new BC premier David Eby. Popham will now oversee Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport. The two ministers worked closely together following the atmospheric river events last fall. ... See MoreSee Less

In a surprise move, Lana Popham -- hailed at the recent BC Dairy Industry Conference as a key ally of the agriculture sector -- has been replaced by Abbotsford-Mission MLA Pam Alexis as part of a cabinet overhaul today by new BC premier David Eby. Popham will now oversee Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport. The two ministers worked closely together following the atmospheric river events last fall.Image attachment
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Goes to show how far-removed our current government is from the agricultural sector. To put someone in this position who has no farming background is a slap in the face to all of our hard-working producers.

Going to be a heck of a learning curve. Helping the agricultural community recover from the biggest natural disasters in history, handling the avian influenza outbreak that is threatening our poultry industry, dealing with a crisis in meat processing, managing ongoing threats from climate change, supporting producers who are facing unprecedented inflation in an industry with very slim margins to begin with..... to name a few of the challenges our new Minister will have to face all with one of the lowest budgets of any ministry. I wish her the best of luck but I hope she's got a lot of support around her.

Best of wishes in your new position

Congrats to Pam, cool to see a Fraser Valley based ag minister but also so sad to see Lana reassigned . I have no doubt she will do an amazing job in her new role.

Will be missed by #meiernation

Bryce Rashleigh

Nooooooo!

Lana did a shit job and now we have a minister with no farming background at all. Aren’t we lucky..

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Poultry and hops a winning combination

OYF winners credit community involvement for their success

2020 Outstanding Young Farmers Ray and Tracey Bredenhof with sons, from left to right, Kaleb, 5, Evan, 11, Noah, 7, and Jacob, 15. Photo / Ronda Payne

June 1, 2020 byPeter Mitham

ABBOTSFORD – The vast difference between the farm they started in 2005 and what it’s become as Ray and Tracey Bredenhof have expanded from broiler production to hops is testimony to not only their own efforts but the support of their community.

“By getting involved, opportunities come up. You meet great people and you learn from other people’s experiences as well,” says Ray. “When we walked onto the farm the very first time compared to now, we couldn’t have planned it.”

The result is the award in this year’s BC/Yukon Outstanding Young Farmers Program, announced May 11. This was the second year in a row the couple were nominated for the award, given to farmers aged 18 to 39.

The couple, who have four children ages five to 15, began farming in 2005 with R&T Poultry. They steadily expanded it, and now produce 225,000 birds a year. The barns were recently upgraded to accommodate 25% more birds, and last year the flock shifted to antibiotic-free production.

“[It’s] the way the industry is headed so we’re getting ahead of the curve on that one,” he says.

Hops were added into the mix in 2016, and today Bredenhof Hop Farms is one of the largest growers in the province, with 21 acres of its own and an equal amount with contract growers.

“That’s not really what we intended when we got into hops,” he says, modestly. “A few of the other farms have pulled out, and we’ve picked up a bit more acreage here and there. We’re really enjoying the industry.”

Growth has not been without its challenges, however.

One of the family’s barns, representing about a third of its production, burned down in April. There were no human or avian casualties, but it’s a reminder not to take anything for granted.

Personally, the couple’s oldest son was diagnosed with bone cancer. It’s in remission, but the experience reinforced the importance of being surrounded by a strong community. The couple have given back, too, supporting fundraising events including the Variety telethon, BC Children’s Hospital telethon and Ronald McDonald House.

“We’ve gotten involved in a lot of that type of stuff, on top of our agricultural [commitments],” says Bredenhof, who also chairs the BC Hop Growers Association.

He encourages other growers to get involved in their own commodity organizations.

“Get involved as much as you can,” he says. “It doesn’t always have to take a ton of time or a ton of resources. Sometimes it leads down a path you weren’t planning on, and that’s okay. We’ve really enjoyed that part of it.”

Typically presented at a ceremony each March, this year’s Outstanding Young Farmers award event was cancelled in response to COVID-19.

Typically presented at a ceremony each March, this year’s Outstanding Young Farmers award event was cancelled in response to COVID-19.

Brian Pauls, who succeeded Sara Harker as chair of the BC/Yukon Outstanding Young Farmers Program in March, said an event could occur this summer but no plans have been made.

Receiving the award from the BC/Yukon program makes the Bredenhofs finalists for the national competition, which takes place in Saskatoon in December 3-6.

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