4 Generations of Berry Farmers

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Abbotsford is home to a lot of large farming families and the Braichs are a typical example of the expansion, contraction, diversity and shared management seen in many multi-generational operations that span the decades.

JK Agro Industries began in 1975 when Kehar Braich purchased a 10-acre raspberry farm for his sons to provide extra income for the growing family. Kehar was an early immigrant from India to Canada, settling in the Fraser Valley in 1945 after his brother arrived in 1940. His sons Sher, Jagdish and Ken embraced the farm business and took it to new levels, using it as their father intended to supplement their income as foremen in the lumber industry. They would work at the mill all day, then come home and work on the farm.

Kehar’s grandson Jack Braich (son of Jagdish) says the original 10-acre farm was the catalyst leading to a raspberry operation that at its peak had up to 400 pickers in the field during harvest.

The 10-acre farm was purchased from the Faulk family who remained in their house next door and helped the fledgling farmers understand the business of growing berries.

“Back then, we had big families, so this [farming] was just for extra money,” Jack’s cousin David (son of Sher) says. “We learned [farming] from Janice Faulk.”

He adds that soon after purchasing the first raspberry farm, the family bought a laying hen operation next door. “We sold that and bought more acreage,” he explains. “Another 18 acres.”

That acreage was soon planted in raspberries: Willamette, Meeker and Haida. Then the family acquired a lease for 100 acres of farmland at the Abbotsford-based Matsqui prison in 1980.

“We were one of the only families that got a lease for the prison farm,” David says.

“We had strawberries around the prison,” added Jack. “We had cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, raspberries and blueberries as well.”

Shortly afterwards, they leased another 100-acre farm where they planted strawberries: Sumas, Hood and Totem. “We were running about 550 acres at one point,” Jack says. “In the early ‘80s we bought our first processing plant. It burnt down. Then we built Clearbrook Packers and sold it to Abby Growers.”

The first two generations of the berry-growing Braich family had managed to build a sizeable operation spanning hundreds of acres and employing hundreds of people, but the family was far from done.

It didn’t take long before the grandchildren were involved in the operation and putting their own mark on it.

Sher’s children Jim, Channi and David;  Jagdish’s kids Jack and Sonyia; and Ken’s children Brandon, Aliesha and Haley all moved on to work in the farm business.  David now manages the farm full time with the help of Dave Mattu, who has worked for the family for decades, along with the input and assistance from the family members, and it all happened because the sons of the second generation established a three-way partnership which they passed down to their children, the third generation of farmers.

Now, that legacy is being passed on yet again, as the great-grandkids of the original owners are now moving into the business. “I’m the third generation,” Jack says proudly, “and my son is the fourth generation.”

JK Agro now grows about 150 acres of strawberries, blueberries and raspberries on plots within seven square blocks near the Abbotsford Airport. The contraction of the lands came as a result of the challenges faced by many berry farmers: labour shortages, cheap import berries and rising costs of doing business that hit in the late 90s and early 2000s. That’s when the family started scaling back.

The timing wasn’t all bad. The prison was ready to expand and wanted the land back. The family sold off the smaller parcels and kept the large ones actively producing. As well, like their parents, these enterprising third generation farmers have side businesses. Jack, for example, is involved in the trucking industry.

“We like to keep busy,” he says, with classic understatement.

When looking at the berry varieties they grow now, Jack feels their Chemainus raspberries are a strong, fresh variety and it’s one of the family’s favourites. He says they machine harvest so well that it’s hard to tell if they are machine or hand-picked. They’ve come a long way from the berries of 1975.

“We used to hand-pick everything back in the day,” David says. “A lot of careers started here.”  

More careers are starting on the fields today. Many of the fourth generation family members are taking part in continuing the berry-growing legacy. David’s 15-year-old daughter Nya started driving the tractor over a year ago. His 12-year old daughter Jaya is getting more involved as is Jack’s 14-year-old son Jaxson along with other fourth-generation Braich family members.

These youngsters will have more to do in the future as the berry-producing lands are again growing in acreage, but in more deliberate and gradual steps than in the past.

“Every year, we’re expanding two acres in strawberries,” Jack says. “We just planted 25 more acres of raspberries, Chemainus, Squamish and Rudi. We used to do Meeker, but the climate has changed.”

Fortunately, the raspberry varieties the family chose weren’t hard hit by the late winter that will cause problems for the industry this season. The most damage seen was in the older plants – those more than 13 years old – and the brand new plantings.

Another 20-acre parcel is on reclaimed land. Lafarge quarried and removed drain rock from the field, then restored it and the Braich family replanted seven acres of strawberries and 13 acres of raspberries. The land took a couple of years to settle, but Jack says it’s now performing well and drainage isn’t an issue.

All of the strawberries grown by JK Agro are fresh, ever-bearing varieties like Albion, Sweetscape, Rainier and Sunrise.

“We put a lot of work into our strawberries,” Jack explains. “I run the strawberry part of it.”

He says growing good raspberries and strawberries requires a constant investment. There is no plan to change these existing farm practices. As the saying goes, ‘If it aint broke, don’t fix it’.”

In addition to the strawberries and raspberries, the Braichs have 25 acres of Northland blueberries. These bushes were planted in 1987 and are a popular variety, but will be coming out soon for another drain rock reclamation project.

There are thoughts of putting strawberry greenhouses up in the future and the family regularly considers and explores new options. It’s this kind of ‘bigger thinking’ and diversification that Jack feels has kept the business successful over four generations of farming. By looking at the land from different points of view, maintaining a number of side businesses and diversifying the crops on the farm, it’s a family business that continues to thrive.

“It’s going to be passed on to my son and David’s daughters and the other fourth generation kids,” Jack says of the business.

Now, at nearly 45 years in business, the fourth generation is likely to keep JK Agro going long into the future with the same enthusiasm for berry growing practiced by their great-grandfather.