2021 was an extremely difficult year for farmers in BC with record heat, floods, and fires. While the Ministry of Agriculture Food and Fisheries (MAFF) has been busy responding to farmer’s needs, they have also been moving ahead with several initiatives. O&V caught up with MAFF minister Lana Popham just before Christmas to look back at the year.
O&V
“You have been very busy helping farmers with the extreme weather events.”
Minister Popham
“Yes, we were just starting to get to the bottom of the damage estimates for the heat dome when the flooding happened in November.” (after the interview is list of the damage estimates)
O&V
“What programs are available to help farmers recover from their loses?”
Minister Popham
“We do have quite the suite of programs through our business risk management department, including Crop Insurance (also known as Production Insurance), AgriStability, and AgriRecovery. Crop insurance in particular would help significantly especially with this flooding, but we don’t see a massive up take on that program.”
We are able to back date AgriStability, so people can sign up now all the way to December 2022, but for crop insurance we use an outside international insurance broker, so we can’t change any dates on that.
We are working furiously on the AgriRecovery program that is cost shared with the federal government. We have submitted our package, and I expect that will be announced in the middle of January and the portal for applications will open. The most important thing people can be doing to prepare for that portal is to document all expenses. Receipts, and even a journal entry on a calendar, will definitely make the process go faster.
There is a lot we are even considering outside the normal slate of things that are covered. We know, for example, that berry growers are going to need some time for their plants if they need to be replanted to start producing again.”
O&V
“The ministry was very active over the summer and fall developing a strategy for tree fruits. Can you comment on how the process went, who was involved and the outcome?”
Minister Popham
One of the things we have realized, it’s been year after year, decades, is that the fruit tree industry has been declining. We decided this is it. Either we address some of the problems, which are hard for some people to accept, or we are not going to have an industry at all.
Government of BC
Helicopter Tour
Lana Popham, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries, MLAs Ian Paton and Pam Alexis, witness the flood devastation over Abbotsford and Chilliwack BC, November 23, 2021.
We spoke with growers and other folks in the industry and asked, what is the best way to address governance models, transparency and modernization of the industry? We came up with a whole list of things that could be implemented. Then we took it back out to the industry and the associations and over many, many stressful meetings - and I would love to give credit to the many participants - there was an agreement that the plan we have come up with was a plan that people could support.
We have a lot to be proud of in the tree fruit industry, but we have to align ourselves in the most effective way. I am looking forward to moving ahead on some actions and we are going to go back to the growers and associations often because we all have to be in this together.”
O&V
The “Path Forward” document includes 19 recommendations. Are there a couple that you believe are really key?”
Minister Popham
“One of them that I think is quite key, and welcome, is supporting growers to have the best quality of product. It’s the same thing that I have been hearing since the 1990’s, having ministry experts on the ground, what has been called extension services. There has been a lack of resources within the Ministry and I think it is one of the most important things we can do.
Secondly, I think that when we look at what we are replanting and what we are identifying as future market possibilities, that is one thing that has always been, I’d say, controversial. But we have to recognize what other areas of the world are growing and where we can align ourselves best in the marketplace. BC is small compared to other jurisdictions. We don’t necessarily have to identify ourselves as a niche market, but we have to be the best at what we are doing. So looking at what we are replanting, looking at how we develop the market place for other types of varieties, is critically important and that is going to take investing in the research. Government can also do our part on the marketing side with our Buy BC program.”
O&V
“Are there recommendations that are moving towards implementation? Is there money to support them?”
Minister Popham
“Figuring that out as we come up to the next budget cycle is our job, we need to make sure we have the budget. But this is the thing with this industry. If we don’t invest in the right ways right now, we are going to lose the industry. It is important for our government to make sure that we are supporting apple and other fruit tree growers because they are a good part of our economy and they are also a good part of communities. If we lose them, we lose a lot of other things that go with it, and we are not willing to do that.”
Government of BC
Aerial View
Lana Popham, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries, MLAs Ian Paton and Pam Alexis, witness the flood devastation over Abbotsford and Chilliwack BC, November 23, 2021.
O&V
“This is the second year for Raspberry replant. How is the response?”
Minister Popham
“Response is excellent, but because of the floods we are going to have a different issue with the raspberry industry. We are going to lose some acres for sure. But the raspberry growers I have had conversations with don’t want to give it up. They haven’t had a lot of government support before, so I am happy we did that, and we will continue. I think we are looking at a budget increase for that as well.”
O&V
“Secondary housing will be allowed on ALR land beginning in the new year. How will that support BC farmers?”
Minister Popham
“I think we have struck a balance between acknowledging what people are up against these days, with either needing space for farm workers or they need a mortgage helper or whatever they want. It also acknowledges that how we define what was needed by a family farm has changed over the years. We are also hoping, and I have heard a couple of reports back, that it has allowed a farm to start up because having help live right on the farm has made that happen.”
O&V
“Improving worker housing was a priority going in to 2021. Any new developments?”
Minister Popham
“Because of the floods, I think we have lost a lot of worker housing in the Sumas Prairie area, so we are going to have to address that. We are going to be looking for quality housing to be in its place and whether or not that is in the Sumas Prairie area or outside is yet to be seen. We continue to address the quality of housing with the Mexican consulate. I know there has been a lot of improvement over the last three years, but I think to be honest we will need to pay more attention to that as this year unfolds, we are going to have a lack of housing for sure.”
BC Provincial Extreme Weather - Damage Estimates
- The tree fruit sector has a high participation rate in production insurance and they rely on the program to manage weather related risk.
- Production insurance provides coverage on 13,000 acres of tree fruit orchards.
- Production insurance received 1255 claims from tree fruit growers in 2021. Of those, 886 were claims for damage from the heat event.
- When all claims are finalized, it is expected to be in the region of $17 million dollars.
- 2019 and 2020 crop years were also difficult for weather related losses and production insurance paid $16.4 million and $22.5 million respectively.
- The 10-year average indemnity payment to the tree fruit sector is $9.5 million.
Heat Event
- Fresh market and early season individually quick frozen raspberry grades were significantly impacted by extreme heat. Fruit was sun scalded, shriveled and small.
- The BC Raspberry Council estimates raspberry crop loss due to the extreme heat was around 35%.
- Early and mid-season blueberry varieties in the Central and Eastern Fraser Valley were damaged due to the extreme heat. Crop loss was variable by farm and by variety, with some farms losing 10-30% of their crop.
- The BC Blueberry Council is reporting a total crop of 140 million pounds for 2021. This is down from previous years and below the potential production for BC (estimated potential of 200 million pounds), however poor pollination was a contributing factor to reduced yields.
- Production insurance received 135 claims of heat damage from berry growers across the Fraser Valley and Lower Mainland.
- To date $4.85 million dollars has been paid to berry growers.
- Not all berry growers purchase production insurance so the actual damages will not be reflective of the impact to the entire industry.
Flood Event
- There were approximately 2200 acres of blueberries, 80 acres of raspberries/blackberries and over 15 acres of strawberries on the Sumas Prairie that were impacted by the flooding. Some of these fields remained under water for more than three weeks.
- Fields on the Sumas Prairie were impacted by both extreme heat in June and flooding in November.
- Production insurance has received 77 claims of flood damage to berry crop and plants from the November flood event.
- It is still too early to quantify damage and potential payments, but production insurance will be working with producers as they return to their operations.
Fire and Smoke Impacts and Claims
- Production insurance received very few claims for damage from fire or smoke damage from grape growers and wineries.
- No appreciable crop loss or loss in grape juice quality was reported however, one claim was paid to a grower with smoke taint from a nearby wildfire.