Scenic autumn view of the rural landscape, orchards, vineyards, and wineries of Oliver located in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia, Canada. Photo: laughingmango/iStock/Getty Images Plus

Local food system would reap big economic benefits researcher says

B.C. researchers found that the Okanagan could produce two thirds of its own food while maintaining exports

Assuming an average Canadian diet, the Okanagan can currently produce 88 per cent of its dairy needs, Mullinix and colleagues wrote in a report on the study. It can produce 60 per cent of its poultry needs, 34 per cent of its fruit needs (due to fruits eaten that can’t be grown in the region, or are eaten out of season), and small amounts of other food groups like grains, red meat, eggs and oils.


Parts of the Trans Canada Highway at Abbotsford, B.C. remain submerged in flood waters on Nov. 19, 2021. (Photo: Reuters/Jennifer Gauthier)

Repair work on B.C. rail lines expected for days yet

CP expects to resume service 'mid-week;' some highways open only for essential travel

Canada’s big two railways expect repair work to continue into at least next week before service can resume through storm-battered areas of British Columbia to export terminals at Vancouver. Both railways, along with several major B.C. highways, have been shut this week due to damage from flooding and landslides spurred by a major multi-day storm […] Read more

Delivery vans from the Save-On-Foods grocery store chain wait for a police escort to cross through a landslide near Hope, B.C. on Nov. 18, 2021 to restock the local grocery store after rainstorms caused flooding and landslides in the region. (Photo: Reuters/Jesse Winter)

Panicked shoppers clear out flood-hit B.C.’s grocery stores

Reuters — Shoppers in British Columbia have emptied grocery shelves following catastrophic flooding, although the shortages are as much down to panic buying as disrupted supply chains, industry associations said on Thursday. Even as flood waters start to recede, some parts of the province are expected to face to temporary shortages of dairy supplies, with […] Read more


Ten-year-old Balsam fir trees on Nov. 12, 2021 at Downey Tree Farm and Nursery at Hatley, Que., about 30 km south of Sherbrooke. (File photo: Reuters/Christinne Muschi)

B.C. floods may tighten market for real Christmas trees

'We're basically shut down until the water recedes'

Ottawa | Reuters — Finding the perfect real Christmas tree will be harder and more expensive this year. Canada, the world’s top exporter of natural Christmas trees, is grappling with a shortage that will likely be exacerbated by historic flooding in British Columbia, where some tree farms are underwater. A phenomenon known as an atmospheric […] Read more

Thousands in B.C. still stranded by flood waters

'We are not out of this by a long shot'

Abbotsford | Reuters — Rescuers and workers in British Columbia were still trying to reach 18,000 people stranded on Thursday after floods and mudslides destroyed roads, houses and bridges in what could be the costliest natural disaster in the country’s history. Receding flood waters were helping rescue efforts, but the downpour blocked off entire towns […] Read more


File photo of a farmed mink. (Konstantin Sokolov/iStock/Getty Images)

B.C. calling halt to mink farming

Live mink on farms to be banned in 2023

British Columbia’s remaining mink farmers are “devastated” by the province’s proposal to phase out their industry over risks related to COVID-19. The province announced Friday it’s starting the process toward a permanent ban on mink farming — beginning with a ban on mink breeding, followed by a ban on live mink on farms by April […] Read more

File photo of apple picking in a Canadian orchard. (Martinedoucet/E+/Getty Images)

New B.C. youth work rules: Heavy lifting, ag chem handling out

New standards also lift province's 'general working age' to 16

“Light farm and yard work” are deemed appropriate for workers at ages 14 and 15 under new employment standards taking effect in British Columbia this fall. The province on Wednesday announced changes to its Employment Standards Act, which have been through the development and consultation stages since 2019, have now been finalized and will take […] Read more


A vineyard at Naramata in B.C.’s Okanagan Valley. (File photo by Dave Bedard)

B.C. again waives ag income threshold for farm properties

Some farms otherwise risked property tax reclassification

British Columbia farmers who’ve taken pandemic-induced losses in farm income will be able to keep their farm properties classified as such for another tax year. The province on Monday announced that for the second year running, it will waive the minimum farm income thresholds normally required for B.C. properties to be classified as farms for […] Read more

(Lovelyshot/iStock/Getty Images)

B.C. ag ministry to take over regulation for on-farm slaughter

Class D- and E-licensed sites to move to ag ministry oversight

British Columbia is set to consolidate all provincial-level meat inspection duties into its agriculture ministry — including the regulatory oversight for on-farm slaughter work. The province announced Wednesday that all slaughter work licensed under its Meat Inspection Regulation for Class A, B, D and E sites will now be regulated through the ag ministry, starting […] Read more