The Ministry of Agriculture has begun consultations with B.C. farmers to help farming families earn a better living and have more opportunities to use their land.

The consultations with B.C. farmers will inform the drafting of regulations related to Bill 24. Minister of Agriculture Norm Letnick recently met in Richmond with representatives from the B.C. Agriculture Council (BCAC), the Union of British Columbia Municipalities (UBCM) and the Agricultural Land Commission (ALC) to discuss the consultation process. Based on their feedback, 11 questions were identified as key areas for consultation. The questions focus on identifying what steps can be taken to balance our desire to protect valuable farmland and further support farming families and the farming sector. The 11 questions to be included in the consultation are listed in the attached backgrounder.

In the coming weeks, senior ministry officials will host stakeholder consultations in each of the six regions of the province’s Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR), and in addition to these meetings provide British Columbians an opportunity to review the discussion paper and submit their ideas by Aug. 22, 2014, at: www.engage.gov.bc.ca/landreserve or directly via Canada Post.

At the close of the consultations, the input from the regional meetings and website will be summarized and presented by Letnick to the minister's reference group consisting of the B.C. Agriculture Council, UBCM and ALC representatives for further comment and discussion, before being presented to government for consideration.

Quotes:

Minister of Agriculture, Norm Letnick −

“We’re talking with B.C. farmers, local governments and the ALC to draw on their collective expertise about how we can support B.C. farmers and their families, and ensure the generations to come can continue to produce food on B.C. farmland. I look forward to hearing the ideas and opportunities identified in the coming weeks.”

ALC chair, Richard Bullock −

“Discussion with farmers and ranchers throughout the province is an important step in the process of updating the ALR regulations. I look forward to hearing from those ALR stakeholders on how they believe changes can enhance farm and ranch businesses and strengthen the protection of the land base that is essential to sustainable agriculture in the long term.”

A backgrounder follows.

Media Contacts:

Jason Macnaughton
Communications Director
Ministry of Agriculture
jason.macnaughton@gov.bc.ca
250 356-1812

BACKGROUNDER

B.C. government consults to help farmers succeed

A complete copy of the discussion paper and background that will be presented at stakeholder meetings is available here: www.engage.gov.bc.ca/landreserve and includes additional context related to the following 11 questions, which were developed based on feedback from representatives of BCAC, UBCM and the ALC. In addition to these specific questions, the ministry is also seeking any additional comments or ideas related to the development of new regulations.

British Columbians are invited to submit their ideas on these same questions via: www.engage.gov.bc.ca/landreserve

Comments can also be submitted by mail at: ALR Reg Consultation, PO Box 9120 Stn. Provincial Government, Victoria BC, V8W 9B4

Consultation questions:

• Should the parameters for allowable on-farm food storage, packing, processing and retail establishments be revised?
• Should breweries, distilleries and meaderies be allowed on ALR land on the same or similar terms as wineries and cideries are currently allowed?
• Should the allowable footprint for consumption areas (or lounges) ancillary to wineries and cideries (and potentially also breweries, distilleries and meaderies) be increased, and if so on what basis?
• To what extent should wineries and cideries (and potentially breweries, distilleries and meaderies) be allowed to sell alcohol that was produced elsewhere in B.C., not at the winery or cidery?
• Should anaerobic digesters be permitted in the ALR if the inputs are generated from farming activities?
• Should on-farm cogeneration facilities be permitted on farms where a portion of the energy created is used on-farm?
• Should the parameters be expanded for when non-agriculture related businesses are allowed to operate on ALR properties in Zone 2?
• Should the subdivision of ALR properties in Zone 2 to a minimum parcel size of a quarter section be allowed without an application to the ALC? 
• Should greater clarity be provided on what constitutes an agri-tourism activity that is allowable in the ALR without an application?
• Should the subdivision of ALR parcels in Zone 2 that are of a defined size, and that are divided by a major highway or waterway, be allowed without an application to the ALC?
• Should temporary leases of portions of a property in Zone 2 of the ALR be allowed without an application to the ALC for:
    (a) intergenerational transfer of an active farm or ranch operation; and/or
    (b) to encourage the use of otherwise unfarmed land by existing or new farmers?

Media Contacts:

Jason Macnaughton
Communications Director
Ministry of Agriculture
jason.macnaughton@gov.bc.ca
250 356-1812