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Originally published:

April 2019
Vol. 105 Issue 4

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Stories In This Edition

One province, one panel

Groundwater deadline extended

Happy as a pig!

Sidebar: Still waiting

Feds pour millions into tree fruit research

Sidebar: Will local procurement help?>

Editorial: Confined spaces

Back Forty: BC farmers need more than a land bank

Island Good campaign drives local sales

Poultry industry seeks to stop infighting

Good egg!

Egg farmers to receive biggest quota boost ever

New entrant focus

Decision day looms for chicken pricing appeal

Producers look to CanadaGAP for certification

Organic sector undertakes core review

Hopping to it!

Island couple named Outstanding Young Farmers

Turkey consumption continues to decline

BC potato growers enjoy a strong footing

Sudden tree fruit dieback a growing concern

Late season BC cherries in global demand

Farmers’ markets aim to be local food hubs

Field trial hopes to reduce phosphorus levels

Future looking bright for BC dairy producers

BC could benefit from US trade battles

Saputo puts its Courtenay plant out to pasture

The land of milk and salmon

Sidebar: Farming for the future

Out of the hands of BC farmers

Codes of practice need producer input

Preparation essential for wildfire response

Sidebar: Relief announced for drought, fire

Sidebar: Be FireSmart with these tips

New traceability regs to track movement

Agriculture a notable threat to species at risk

Improper pesticide use threatens access

Threat to neonics spurs scare in spud growers

Orchard presses forward with diversification

Climate-smart growing

Staying on top of soil health is key to sound farming

No small potatoes

Farm families need to have affairs in order

Rotary parlours go upscale at two FV dairies

Study compares organic, conventional diets

Advisory service foresees growing demand

Sidebar: Tree fruit cutbacks a concern

Island dairy producers hone first aid skills

Woodshed: And that’s how rumours get their teeth

Research farm showcases small projects

Jude’s Kitchen: Shooting stars of spring

 

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3 days 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.

3 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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Study compares organic, conventional diets

Research indicates pesticide levels greatly reduced within days of strict organic protocol

Organics

March 26, 2019 byMargaret Evans

A recent study conducted by Friends of the Earth and published online by Elsevier in the journal Environmental Research explored whether an organic diet would reduce levels of urinary pesticides.

Previous research has done similar studies but they mostly focused on organophosphate pesticides. This study looked at pyrethroids and neonicotinoids, two compounds that are used increasingly in crop production around the world. Neonicotinoids have become one of the most widely used class of insecticides and they account for some 20% of the current global insecticide market.

The fascinating thing is that the study found that switching to an organic diet significantly reduced levels of pesticides in all participants after less than one week.

“On average, the pesticide and pesticide metabolite levels detected dropped by 60.5% after just six days of eating an all-organic diet,” the press release stated.

But here’s the rub.

The study was conducted on only four families represented by seven adults (ages 36-52) and nine children (ages 4-15). They were from Oakland, Minneapolis, Baltimore and Atlanta. Nine were Caucasian, four were Hispanic/Latino and three were African American.

The study was short – just 12 days – but very controlled. For the first five days, participants all ate their conventional diets. During days six through 11, they were all provided with certified organic food to eat whether at home, school or work. Dinners were prepared with all organic ingredients by a licensed chef or caterer and delivered to the participants by the research assistants. The trial ended on day 12 after the final urine collection (158 urine samples in total).

According to the report, there was a 61% drop in chlorpyrifos, an organophosphate pesticide considered moderately hazardous to humans by the World Health Organization, a 95% drop in malathion, an organophosphate insecticide, and an 83% drop in clothianidin, a neonicotinoid pesticide believed to be a main driver of huge pollinator losses. The study also showed a 37% drop in pyrethroids, and a 37% drop in the world’s oldest herbicide 2,4-D. In 2016, the Pest Management Regulatory Agency, a division of Health Canada, concluded in its special review that 2,4-D is not a carcinogen.

What made the study interesting was that the levels by which pesticides and herbicides dropped following a switch to an organic diet occurred in less than one week. The study built on previous research by examining dietary exposure to pesticides that have not been studied in similar intervention research in the past. This study recorded reductions of metabolites in urine samples in 13 pesticides and compounds.

And that begs the question that if these insecticides disappeared so quickly in such a significant amount, how non-persistent are they? And how are scientists rating their danger level?

While claims are made in the report of the many and varied health hazards from exposure to pesticides, it would be helpful to have better clarification on the level of exposure relative to duration and circumstances. This would be valuable for all consumers.

However, the report did acknowledge that gaps exist regarding specific health effects to chronic low-level exposure. The researchers also referred to a study done in 2018 that looked at the consumption habits of 70,000 adults and found that a higher frequency of consuming organic food was protective against several cancers.

Quick to shed

“This important study shows how quickly we can rid our bodies of toxic pesticides by choosing organic,” said Sharyle Patton, director of the Commonweal Biomonitoring Resources Center and co-author of the study.

Ideally, we all want food that is pesticide/herbicide free. But it can come with another cost not always considered.

Studies have shown that organic yields are generally lower than yields from conventional farming since fertilizers are not used. To produce all our food requirements organically would require farming more land and this could impact climate change.

In an international study conducted by Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden, researchers developed a new method for assessing the climate impact from land use. After comparing organic and conventional food production, results showed that organically grown food can result in greater emissions because of the greater land use demand, a fact not always taken into account in comparisons between the production of organic and conventionally produced food.

“The greater land-use in organic farming leads indirectly to higher carbon dioxide emissions, thanks to deforestation,” said Stefan Wirsenius, associate professor in the Department of Space, Earth and the Environment, Chalmers. “The world’s food production is governed by international trade, so how we farm in Sweden influences deforestation in the tropics. If we use more land for the same amount of food, we contribute indirectly to bigger deforestation elsewhere in the world.”

The FOE study is a fascinating look at pesticide levels in humans and, in the bigger picture, it clearly deserves more research to understand not just dietary exposure but climate implications.

Margaret Evans is a freelance writer based in Chilliwack specializing in agricultural science.

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