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Originally published:

MAY 2020
Vol. 106 Issue 5

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Stories In This Edition

Rapid response

Worker health crisis

Spring melt floods Cariboo

Foreign Labour an essential service for fruit growers

Editorial: Watershed moments

Back Forty: COVID-19 will be a reality check for many

Viewpoint: Register now, question later to keep water rights

COVID-19 has varied impact on poultry sector

Social distancing

Honey producers keep focus on research

Beekeepers stung about import issues

Sidebar: Advocating for technology transfer

Farmland values facing headwinds

IAFBC defers major decisions

BCAC focuses on public trust with lower budget

AgSafe governance set for a shake-up

COVID-19 leads to oversupply of dairy

BC Fairs positive as large events banned

Peace growers facing multiple challenges

Co-op considers four-way fix at crossroads

Surprise audits to double

Co-op focuses on cutting costs, increasing sales

Volatility from plant shutdowns could hit BC

Island farmers renew request for local abattoir

Meat processing capacity stable despite closures

Direct marketing saves producers’ bacon

Small producers ride the online sales wave

Farm equipment dealers keep sale smoving

Strawberry growers pin survival on levies

Sidebar: Blueberry and raspberry AGMs postponed

Raspberry growers target fresh market, quality

Apple soda breaks ground in saturated market

Chilliwack family cracks open direct sales

EFB-resistant trees not out of the woods

Distillery shows resilience as it adapts to market

Home gardeners overwhelm seed companies

Sidebar: Commercial seed supply affected

Research: Viruses pursue unique strategies to evolve

Moisture sensors are not created equal

Woodshed: Kenneth gives new meaning to social isoluation

Farmers’ markets go online as channels shift

Farm Story: Pandemic forces a hard pivot to stay in the game

Cheesemaker adapts to coronavirus restrictions

Jude’s Kitchen: Stay-healty food in uneasy times

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1 day ago

Fecal coliform levels in the streams and watercourses that flow through Langley has been an issue for decades. The Langley Environmental Partners Society (LEPS) has received $97,000 from the federal government to work with property owners to help them reduce their impact on water quality and the environment, and ensure their properties are in compliance with the Agriculture Environmental Management Code of Practice (AEMCoP). The story is in the February edition of Country Life in BC. Subscribe today bit.ly/3RIKms9/.

#BCAg #aemcop
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Fecal coliform levels in the streams and watercourses that flow through Langley has been an issue for decades. The Langley Environmental Partners Society (LEPS) has received $97,000 from the federal government to work with property owners to help them reduce their impact on water quality and the environment, and ensure their properties are in compliance with the Agriculture Environmental Management Code of Practice (AEMCoP). The story is in the February edition of Country Life in BC. Subscribe today https://bit.ly/3RIKms9/.

#BCAg #AEMCoP
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2 days ago

BC dairy farmers are feeling the pinch and some in the Fraser Valley are considering selling as narrow margins get tighter and high financing costs complicate succession plans. It's our cover story in the February edition of Country Life in BC.

bit.ly/3JGgk6B

#bcagriculture #bcdairy
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BC dairy farmers are feeling the pinch and some in the Fraser Valley are considering selling as narrow margins get tighter and high financing costs complicate succession plans. Its our cover story in the February edition of Country Life in BC.

https://bit.ly/3JGgk6B

#bcagriculture #bcdairy
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So much pressure being put on the dairy industry from the US. It’s hard to keep the lobbying at bay. Canadian dairy should supply Canadian tables and the farmers who provide it should be paid what they are worth. There is no such thing as cheap food

Farm Management is key. It can't all be blamed on the government.

Just been watching NZ TV news and the price of food. Most complaining about the price of dairy products due to the fact that domestic prices are high with most production being exported. No supply management.

I really don't understand the concern here. The article literally says 30-40 of 600 BC dairy farms (that's less than 1%) are experiencing financial pressure, likely due to being somewhat overleveraged. Sounds like just some mismanagement rather than a broad policy failure is the cause here.

Whole Food Plant Based eating ...oat milk coconut milk Almond milk soy milk etc

Noooooooo. That’s exactly what this LIB/NDP party wants. They want everyone to cave in to their knees. Don’t do it. It’ll be the end.

A lot of this is government squeeze. Be hungry and compliant!

The government is the eternal enemy of humanity.

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1 week 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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Worker health in focus

Orchards, wineries step up

The Western Agricultural Labour Initiative is expecting to play a greater role in managing workers this year. SUBMITTED / BC WINE INSTITUTE

May 1, 2020 byPeter Mitham

OLIVER – With foreign and domestic workers starting to arrive in the Okanagan for another season, growers are grappling with provincial health guidelines designed to limit the spread of COVID-19.

“It’s going to start the first week of May for grapes, doing some shoot-thinning in vineyards,” says Ron Forrest, the BC Fruit Growers Association liaison who connects domestic workers, including hundreds of Quebec youth, with local growers each summer. “People should start coming in between the first week of May and the third week of May.”

Given this year’s anticipated labour shortage, he was on the ground by mid-April, scouting out local campsites – legal and illegal – for workers. While the workers will be in high demand this year, the communities where they work have also voiced concerns about the seasonal influx.

Several local mayors and the South Okanagan Chamber of Commerce have all expressed fears regarding domestic migrants. Some residents worry they could incubate disease in their encampments and facilitate the spread of COVID-19 in the Okanagan.

While several provinces require new arrivals to self-isolate for 14 days, even if arriving from within Canada, BC has opted for a far more liberal regime. It has so far rejected the implementation of checkpoints or travel restrictions within the province.

However, Quebec, which has the highest rate of known infections in the country, has stringent regulations on the movement of people.

“Such travel should be confined to trips for medical reasons and work when teleworking is not possible,” Quebec regulations state. “In order to protect the most vulnerable populations, checkpoints will be established to limit travel into and out of certain territories.”

Restrictions wanted

Growers are working to address the concerns. A key element is the Loose Bay Campground on Secrest Road in Oliver, which typically sees about 300 workers living there during the summer. Cherry grower Greg Norton was instrumental in its development and fellow grower and friend Allan Patton chairs the Loose Bay Campground Society, which runs it. The Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen designated it a campground for seasonal workers in 2017. Campers pay $5 a day or $30 a week.

“Most places don’t really have any accommodations, especially down south,” says Forrest. “One of the most important things that we have to do is get Loose Bay going.”

Several upgrades have improved servicing at the campground and more are planned this summer to ensure campers respect public health orders when it opens on May 1.

“We’re going to try to add WiFi and washing machines so people don’t have the need to go down to town that often,” says Forrest.

Local officials say Loose Bay residents will be treated as a single group.

Training required

Provincial regulations governing farm workers during the pandemic were finalized on April 6. Workers must receive training on COVID-19 protocols prior to beginning work, including sanitization. The rules require employers ensure adequate distancing on the job, including during breaks, access to handwashing stations and sanitizer, and recommend providing every worker with a personal picking bucket or whatever tools they need.

“Where it is not possible to provide personal tools, the shared tools and equipment must be wiped down and cleaned with a disinfecting agent such as disposable wipes or a diluted bleach solution between uses by different employees,” the rules state.

“If you share a ladder, you’ve got to be able to wash a ladder,” says Forrest, noting that the boxes workers fill with fruit are another conundrum. “They fill it up, and then one person takes it in their hands and takes it to the tractor. How are we going to do this? Are we going to have to sanitize them before? After? These are all things that we’re going to have to figure out.”

To support on-farm measures, AgSafe BC recently made COVID-19 workplace safety materials available on its website. These include prevention procedures, an exposure control plan and employer protocols for a pandemic. Safety notices for workers and signage is also available.

Providers of essential services are protected by provincial order from liability in the event workers, by their own “gross negligence,” become infected.

However, BCFGA warns growers to expect lower productivity this year as a result of public health rules.

“Planning for lower production may be prudent,” it advised members, encouraging them to avoid sinking too much effort into their least-profitable blocks. “On the other hand, it is expected that with reduced supply, produce prices will be increasing.”

The extra cash could come in handy, as strict guidelines governing foreign workers have upped the cost of that option for growers this year. Charter flights from Mexico to Vancouver, including transfer to the Okanagan, is expected to be upwards of $1,200 per worker. An initial flight of 157 workers landed at Vancouver on April 16, and the province expected up to 1,000 workers by April 30. An additional 3,000 were expected to follow.  All told, the province welcomes about 10,000 foreign farm workers each year.

The province is covering the cost of housing and meals for incoming foreign workers during the 14-day isolation period required arrival. Ottawa is also providing employers with $1,500 per worker to cover other costs, including the $900 in wages owing during the quarantine period.

Delays in the arrival of those workers may mean some tasks go unfilled, while some workers may opt not to come during the pandemic. Another slice of the local workforce – students on working holiday visas – have been shut out by border closures. They typically account for about 15% of orchard workers.

“I think we’re not going to have enough people,” says Forrest. “One thing we’re looking at is, hopefully, some locals. That’s what we would like to have.”

While farm work would be a steep learning curve for people who might be used to working at local hotels and restaurants, the opportunities exist.

“When I first came to the Okanagan, I would be picking beside locals,” says Forrest. “This year, I’m thinking there’s no jobs at McDonald’s or anything, so hopefully we can get a few of them to come and help us.”

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