The province announced a new replant program for perennial crops on April 30, ending weeks of speculation regarding the long-awaited initiative. Up to $15 million is being allocated for the new program, to be administered by the Investment Agriculture Foundation of BC. It will have three streams, with funding disbursed on a first come, first …
Province funds pump station
The province has pledged $3.2 million for upgrades to the Barrowtown pump station in Abbotsford that was overwhelmed during the November 2021 flooding on Sumas Prairie, part of a collaborative approach to flood mitigation in the region. But it remained mum on commitments to a new Sumas River pump station, projected to cost $800 million, …
Tulip grower makes the shift to agritourism
ABBOTSFORD – On a bright sunny day in early April, Nick Warmerdam points out his office window at No. 4 and Marion roads to a spot about half a kilometre away across the Trans-Canada Highway. “The dike broke over there,” says Warmerdam, recalling when Sumas Prairie flooded in November 2021. “The water came through here …
Homemade food rules are too restrictive
PENDER ISLAND – While Canadian grocery retailers were called to Ottawa in March to account for last year’s record profits amid double-digit food inflation, one micro food producer in the southern Gulf Islands has been lobbying for changes to regulations on the production and sale of cottage foods. Rising grocery costs and issues of food …
EcoFarm rebrands, expands mandate
A popular agri-tourism destination and demonstration farm in Abbotsford has rebranded to reflect its growing scope of operations. Bill Vanderkooi, chair of the non-profit EcoFarm Innovation Association (formerly EcoDairy Innovation Association), made the announcement on Earth Day, April 22, with special guests including Abbotsford mayor Ross Siemens, Abbotsford MP Ed Fast and former Science World …
Cowboys honoured
This year’s inductees into the BC Cowboy Hall of Fame at the Museum of the Cariboo-Chilcotin in Williams Lake include a well-known farm and ranch safety advocate. Reg Steward was one of four inductees at this year’s ceremony on April 16, which also celebrated the contributions of working cowboy John Young, Okanagan horseman Allan Macdonnell …