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September 2023
Vol. 109 Issue 9

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1 day ago

The Great Spallumcheen Farm & Food Festival and North Okanagan Plowing Match is happening this Sunday, September 24 from 10-3 at Fieldstone Organics, 4851 Schubert Rd, Armstrong. The outdoor festival features tastings and a market brimming with local food and beverage vendors, a horse and tractor plowing competition and vintage farm equipment displays. ... See MoreSee Less

The Great Spallumcheen Farm & Food Festival and North Okanagan Plowing Match is happening this Sunday, September 24 from 10-3 at Fieldstone Organics, 4851 Schubert Rd, Armstrong. The outdoor festival features tastings and a market brimming with local food and beverage vendors, a horse and tractor plowing competition and vintage farm equipment displays.
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Patti 😊

3 days ago

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3 days ago

The top five issues the Canadian Centre for Food Integrity identified in a recent survey were the cost of food, inflation, the cost of energy, keeping healthy food affordable and the Canadian economy. “We are seeing that environmental concerns are not in the top 10,” says Amy Peck, manager of the Canadian Cattle Association’s public and stakeholder engagement program. “If you are concerned about being able to afford to feed your family, the environment becomes less important.” ... See MoreSee Less

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Ranchers get the backstory on public perception

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VERNON – Ranchers might be concerned about how the public sees their industry, but a producer-funded team at the Canadian Cattle Association has their back. Amy Peck, manager of the Canadian Cattleâ...
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4 days ago

BC Tree Fruit Co-op has sold its Lake Country packing house as part of its long-term plan to consolidate operations. The sale, to an undisclosed buyer, closed on August 31, 2023 for $15.8 million. ... See MoreSee Less

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Lake Country packing house sold

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BC Tree Fruit Co-op has sold its Lake Country packing house as part of its long-term plan to consolidate operations. The sale, to an undisclosed buyer, closed on August 31, 2023 for $15.8 million.
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Who bought it ffs ?

Ted Nedjelski Karen Turner

One of my first jobs was apple grading in a packing plant in Vernon

Vivian, is this where you worked?

I’d hear the company that owns the big Cannabis company that owns the green houses all around this packing plant was buying up everything around to expand. Wonder if it’s them that got it.

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5 days ago

The federal government has committed $1.81 million over the next three years to support the BC Poultry Association's preparation for direct participation in responses to future outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza in the province. “The persistence of the virus in wildlife and recurrence of outbreaks globally, presents additional risks during the migratory bird season in North America later in 2023,” the National Collaborating Centre for Environmental Health in Vancouver advised in July. For more, visit www.countrylifeinbc.com/ai-risk-rises-with-fall/ ... See MoreSee Less

The federal government has committed $1.81 million over the next three years to support the BC Poultry Associations preparation  for direct participation in responses to future outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza in the province. “The persistence of the virus in wildlife and recurrence of outbreaks globally, presents additional risks during the migratory bird season in North America later in 2023,” the National Collaborating Centre for Environmental Health in Vancouver advised in July. For more, visit https://www.countrylifeinbc.com/ai-risk-rises-with-fall/
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Surrey ALR inclusion cheered

January 25, 2023 byRonda Payne

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.

Situated in the Campbell Heights area of Surrey, 220 acres are leased to Heppell’s Potato Corp. and are the first in Canada to be planted with potatoes each year. The five parcels also make up a unique ecosystem that allows for food production nearly 10 months of the year as well as long-term crop research. It is also valuable wildlife habitat, being homes to eagles, owls and hawks.

These attributes of the five parcels that make up the site brought people together to support the ALC’s proposal to include the land in the Agricultural Land Reserve in advance of federal plans to dispose of the property. This could open the lands to industrial development.

“When it comes to food security in BC, [this land] is priceless,” says Murray Driediger, president and CEO of BC Fresh, the first of more than 30 speakers who included politicians, business leaders and citizens. “There is a severe shortage of land that can produce crops reliably.”

The land dries out quickly in the spring, allowing for early access, and unlike lower-lying areas, has never been subject to flooding.

“We’ve never lost a potato or carrot or anything to floods,” says Ron Heppell, who has farmed the land for 60 years.

Surrey councillor Linda Annis notes that Surrey unanimously voted to put the land into the ALR last year following an initial outcry over the potential loss of the land for agriculture in June. Delta South MLA and Opposition agriculture critic Ian Paton says he has taken a number of politicians to see the land to understand its benefits.

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.

Of the 30 speakers at the event, none opposed the inclusion bid. Of 365 written submissions received as of January 23, just two expressed opposition – both due to a lack of broad consultation.

“We believe the process should take into account broader regional interests and the totality of land-use and land utilization across the region,” the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade noted, pointing to the region’s dual shortage of housing and industrial land.

All written submissions will be posted on the ALC site, as well as the public hearing presentations.

There is no timeline for a decision, with ALC chair Jennifer Dyson saying consultations are ongoing.

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