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Originally published:

FEBRUARY 2023
Vol. 108 Issue 2

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Stories In This Edition

Ghosted

Dairy farmers on the brink

Groundwater showdown

Finding success in succession planning

Editorial: The great repricing

Back 40: Government priorities are asking a lot

Viewpoint: Does farming need to be a full-time job?

Frozen out

Sidebar: Pruning it right

Letters: Program delivery, advocacy have separate roles

Wild weather continues to hammer dairies

Ag Briefs: Province hires two new assistant deputy ministers

Ag Briefs: BC Milk opens organic stream

Ag Briefs: ALC eyes Heppell property for inclusion

Building not land value bumps farm assessments

Province scrambles to register farm employees

Growers contest compensation formula for AI

Funding available for Langley landowners

Potato crop takes a hit but set to rebound in 2023

Low snowpack worrisome for producers

Prescribed burns part of the three-year study in the Peace

Farmgate abattoirs shut out of insurance

Sidebar: Survey explores insurance coverage

Ranch used as part of treaty settlement

Climate-resilient cattle take shape at TRU

Japanese beetle continues to spread

Field trial shows alternative to traditional crops

On-farm storage helps boost profitability

Market garden powered by solar energy

Farmers need to prioritize mental wellness

Scholarship takes chefs on tours of BC farms

Farm Story: Of things we would be lost without

Sheep producer expands wool market

Sidebar: How M.ovi impacts wild sheep

Fernie grocer stocks only local products

Woodshed: Kenneth’s rescue is touch and go

New map app educates public about BC farms

Snacks for your sweeties

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BC Cattlemen’s Association members gathered in Cranbrook for their 97th AGM last week. BCCA president Werner Stump welcomed upwards of 300 ranchers as he signalled a change in tone with the association’s approach to government. “We are going to be a lot more blunt in our dealings with government as we fight for our livelihood,” Stump told his audience. The North American herd size remains down, and calf prices are expected to stay strong, says Brenna Grant from Canfax. “We could see $5.50 -$5.70 this fall for a 5(00) weight calves.” Duncan and Jane Barnett and family from Barnett Land and Livestock in 150 Mile House received the Ranch Sustainability Award, which recognized their riparian management and community involvement. From left to right, Clayton Loewen with Jane, Duncan and Lindsay Barnett.

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BC Cattlemen’s Association members gathered in Cranbrook for their 97th AGM last week. BCCA president Werner Stump welcomed upwards of 300 ranchers as he signalled a change in tone with the association’s approach to government. “We are going to be a lot more blunt in our dealings with government as we fight for our livelihood,” Stump told his audience. The North American herd size remains down, and calf prices are expected to stay strong, says Brenna Grant from Canfax. “We could see $5.50 -$5.70 this fall for a 5(00) weight calves.” Duncan and Jane Barnett and family from Barnett Land and Livestock in 150 Mile House received the Ranch Sustainability Award, which recognized their riparian management and community involvement. From left to right, Clayton Loewen with Jane, Duncan and Lindsay Barnett.

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Congratulations!!!

Congratulations 👍🎉

Congratulations

Congratulations <3

Congratulations Duncan and Jane Trott Barnett Well deserved recognition

Congratulations!

Congratulations to Duncan, Jane, and all the rest of the Barnett family!

Congratulations Duncan and Jane!!

Congratulations Jane and Ducan! Sandra Andresen Hawkins

Congratulations Jane & Duncan 🥳

Congratulation Duncan & Jane!!

Congratulations Jane Trott Barnett and Duncan!!!

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1 month ago

Grapegrower Colleen Ingram, who was recognized earlier this year as the 2024 Grower of the Year by the BC Grapegrowers Association. “Given the devastation we have had over the last three years, I feel like this award should be given to the entire industry,” she says. Her story appears in the June edition of Country Life in BC, and we've also posted to our website.

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Industry champion named BC’s best grape grower

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KELOWNA – Colleen Ingram’s enthusiasm for collaboration within the BC wine industry is so great that when she was named 2024 Grower of the Year by the BC Grapegrowers Association, she wanted to sh...
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3 months ago

From orchard manager to government specialist and now executive director of the BC Fruit Growers Association, Adrian Arts brings a rare blend of hands-on farming experience and organizational leadership to an industry poised for renewal. His appointment comes at a pivotal moment for BC fruit growers, with Arts expressing enthusiasm about continuing the momentum built by his predecessor and working alongside a board that signals a generational shift in agricultural advocacy.

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Arts leads BCFGA forward

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A combination of organizational management and practical farming experience has primed the new executive director of the BC Fruit Growers Association to lead the industry forward.
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A public consultation is now underway on the powers and duties of the BC Milk Marketing Board. Key issues for dairy producers include transportation costs, rules governing shipments and limitations on supporting processing initiatives. Stakeholders have until May 31 to comment.

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Milk board undertakes review

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A public consultation on the powers and duties of the BC Milk Marketing Board is underway as part of a triennial review required by the British Columbia Milk Marketing Board Regulation.
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Farmgate abattoirs shut out of insurance

Insurers don’t understand new licensing regime, industry

Aaron and Pam Tjepkema were turned down by several insurers for their farmgate abattoir before finally securing coverage from BFL Canada. Dozens of other producers aren't so lucky. FACEBOOK

February 1, 2023 byTom Walker

FORT ST. JOHN – Dozens of new producers granted

on-farm meat processing licences since the province overhauled its meat inspection regime in fall 2021  now face hurdles securing insurance coverage.

“When we looked into getting coverage for a Farmgate Plus licence for poultry, I was given a hard ‘no,’” says Pam Tjepkema of Peace Vale Farm and Meat Shop in Fort St. John.

Peace Vale is a licensed butcher that provides cut-and-wrap for the Tjepkema’s own farm-raised beef as well as that of neighbouring producers.

“We have an abattoir in our area and we are happy continuing to use it for our beef, but we were considering raising chickens and would want to process them ourselves,” she says.

Tjepkema spoke to a number of insurers before securing what she considered the best possible coverage from Crystal Piggott, an account executive with BFL Canada in Salmon Arm.

“She was able to give us coverage for our butcher shop and all of the farm together, but not for a farmgate licence,” Tjepkema says.

Country Life in BC spoke to a number of farmgate licence holders across the province who have been unable to obtain coverage.

“I’m not sure that any of the farmgate businesses really have insurance,” says Julia Smith, executive director of the Small-Scale Meat Producers Association. “They may think that they have coverage, but when they really study their policy, I am worried that they do not have the coverage they think.”

It’s not for lack of trying.

“We’ve been ghosted,” is how one long-time South Coast licensee described the frustration of dealing with insurance companies (the producer asked for anonymity as the operation’s lease could be jeopardized by a lack of insurance). “We would initiate a conversation and they just wouldn’t get back to us, which is odd, because an insurance company is usually all over you to get your business.”

The government has moved to bring more regulation to the industry and open up more opportunities for processing, but a lack of insurance is creating issues for producers.

“This is critical and can’t be ignored. We need some support,” the South Coast licensee says. “The government has taken steps to make us more legal. We should be insurable. Bungee-jumping and zip-line companies are, but we have been unable to obtain even partial coverage for either our house, our buildings or for the inventory of meat that we keep on site when we explain that we have a Farmgate licence for on-farm processing.”

Insurance hasn’t been a problem for one government-inspected facility.

“We were able to get coverage when we opened our slaughter plant to go with our cut-and-wrap this fall,” says Dean Maynard, co-owner of Farmhouse Butchery in Westbridge. “The fact that you have a government inspector on site at all times really makes a difference.”

Piggott says government inspection is key.

“If a producer gets the slaughter done at a provincially inspected facility, we are able to put together coverage for the farm and an on-site butcher shop,” she says. “But we have a concern with on-farm slaughter, whether they may be taking in other animals besides their own, and also the disposal of the processing waste.”

But insurers may not fully understand the new licensing system, and producers say it’s government’s job to explain it.

“We didn’t put together a full package to support our request for poultry farmgate coverage as we are pretty busy,” says Tjepkema. “There is an opportunity for the government to explain to the insurance industry what the farmgate licence requires, including the SlaughterSafe course, the development of a food safety plan, standard operating procedures, and a minimum of a yearly inspection.”

SSMPA is working to fill the gap, Smith says.

“We are working with different insurance companies to explain the system to them and try to see if we can build a group plan for our members,” she explains. “But we also hope that the government will move towards more virtual inspection services. They’ve talked about it, our members are in favour of it, and it could help with insurance coverage.”

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