BC Gov News

Between Jan. 1 and June 30, 2016, $6,985,523 in funding was released under Growing Forward 2.

Aerobotika Aerial Intelligence Ltd.

• $33,800 to evaluate and pilot the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for agricultural applications in B.C.

Allen Dobb Consulting

• $20,681 to supply planning, coordination and project management services associated with development of two producer-led silvopasture case studies/demonstration sites in the Cariboo.

Amec Foster Wheeler Americas Ltd.

• $52,424 to conduct an evaluation of ventilation systems used in the dairy, poultry and hog sectors to understand the benefits and risks of different types of systems from environmental, social and economic perspectives.

BC 4-H Provincial Council

• $7,500 to deliver the B.C. 4-H Future Leaders program for young adults aged 21 to 25 years throughout the province.

BC Agricultural Research & Development Corporation

• $1,752,131 to decrease the agriculture sector’s impact on B.C.’s water, soil and air quality through the Environmental Farm Plan (EFP) and Beneficial Management Practices (BMP) programs.
• $150,468 to continue administration and delivery of the Climate Change Adaptation Program.
• $104,821 to provide administration services for the Traceability Adoption Program.
• $99,100 to continue to deliver farm animal welfare training through the Livestock Welfare Assessment Course.
• $30,588 to deliver the On-Farm Food Safety Program.
• $14,960 to develop, promote and deliver a mass destruction swine seminar to current producers, past producers and swine veterinarians in the Fraser Valley and Peace regions of B.C.
• $5,800 to consult industry and the broader public on the implementation of new standardized procedures for the humane slaughter of animals.
• $10,000 to support the Agri-Energy & Waste Management Forum and the Agricultural and Municipal Biogas Forum.

BCCA Program Delivery Inc.

• $53,980 to complete a socio-economic and environmental review of agricultural dams in B.C. in order to provide agricultural producers in the beef sector with increased knowledge and understanding related to the community values of agricultural dams.
• $19,711 to enhance beef sector competitiveness by developing a forage inventory database and data collection process.
• $8,796 to develop, promote and deliver a biosecurity training module and information package to B.C. beef producers.

BC Blueberry Council

• $20,299 to identify the degree of Botrytis resistance and effectiveness of commonly used fungicides to control disease in berry crops.
• $15,295 to continue the Blueberry Audible Bird Scare Device Liaison Program.

BC Food Processors Association

• $261,135 to continue delivery of the Post-Farm Food Safety Program.

BC Fruit Growers’ Association

• $19,800 to complement CFIA apple maggot monitoring in B.C.’s Interior.

B.C. Investment Agriculture Foundation

• $1,745,899 to continue to deliver the Canada-BC Agri-Innovation Program to increase awareness, development and adoption of innovative products, processes and technologies.
• $651,351 to continue to deliver the BC Agrifoods and Seafood Export Program to support increased export sales from B.C.’s agri-food sector.
• $255,016 to administer and deliver the Climate Change Adaptation Program.

BC Pork Producers Association

• $3,315 to develop the BC Pork Canadian Swine Health Intelligence Network.

BC Turkey Marketing Board

• $34,985 to continue the Improving Welfare in Free Range Turkeys program.

Canadian Institute of Food Science & Technology

• $3,500 to provide an educational workshop to the members of Canadian Institute of Food Science & Technology on the topic of food traceability in B.C. and Canada.

Central Cariboo Economic Development Corporation

• $1,500 to conduct a feasibility study for greenhouse operations in Williams Lake.

Centre for Coastal Health Society

• $46,000 to develop surveillance for endemic diseases of animals using the Canadian Animal Health Surveillance Network.
• $15,353 to develop and implement an antimicrobial resistance (AMR) reporting system using AMR data generated by the Animal Health Centre.
• $8,000 to develop and implement disease surveillance for selected diseases of cattle and swine using the Canadian Animal Health Surveillance Network.

Diamond Head Consulting

• $37,615 for continued development of Air Quality Vegetative Buffer beneficial management practices for B.C. Agriculture.

E.S. Crop Consult

• $15,869 to conduct research on pathogens and pests in beets.

ETHOS Career Management Group Ltd.

• $102,076 to deliver the Entrepreneur Accelerator Program to help increase jobs and revenues in the agri-food sector.

Flying Fresh Air Freight

• $8,292 to hire a shipping company to work with the B.C. Ministry of Agriculture and B.C. agri-food and seafood companies to facilitate the shipment of product samples to international tradeshows.

Gordon Gadsden

• $7,340 to identify and characterize wetlands within the Fraser Valley that can be used for Avian Influenza Sediment Surveillance, and to assist in the development of a survey tool to characterize poultry farms with regard to their propensity for attracting or deterring wild waterfowl.

Grounded Strategies Inc.

• $76,394 to develop and deliver domestic and export marketing workshops.

GSGislason & Associates Ltd.

• $27,000 to develop strategic marketing and production plans.

Hallbar Consulting Inc.

• $19,950 to research nutrient recovery systems and evaluate their feasibility and applicability to B.C. agriculture.

J.C. Williams Group Limited

• $15,000 to help B.C.’s agri-food and seafood industry understand how to leverage e-commerce technologies to increase sales in domestic and international markets.

Kimbo Design Inc.

• $85,000 to develop an online and printed exporter directory enabling international buyers to access information on active B.C. exporters.

Kwantlen Polytechnic University

• $26,663 to research native Trichoderma isolates suitable for the control of soil borne diseases of vegetable, blueberry and raspberry crops in the Fraser Valley.

Lower Mainland Horticulture Improvement Association

• $22,946 to support Innovation speakers for the 2016 Horticulture Growers’ Short Course.
• $15,000 to develop and deliver the Farm Business Management speaker sessions held in conjunction with the 2016 Pacific Agriculture Show.

McCall Management Ltd.

• $10,400 to evaluate the effectiveness of mechanical site preparation as a BMP on forested rangelands to enhance forage seedbed area, facilitating forage establishment simultaneous with maintaining timber production.

MDB Insight Inc.

• $79,500 to provide market intelligence on B.C.'s food and beverage processing industry.

Mighty Oaks Wireless Solutions Inc.

• $2,618 to develop an online agri-food business assessment tool.

MNP LLP

• $36,000 to provide market intelligence on B.C.’s food preparations industry in order to better target programs and services to support increased sales of these products in domestic and international markets.
• $15,790 to conduct an assessment of the policy objectives and desired outcomes for Strategic Initiatives as outlined in the Growing Forward 2 multilateral and bilateral agreements.

Nathan Fong & Associates

• $38,089 to hire a professional chef to promote B.C. seafood at three international annual seafood shows.

Okanagan Basin Water Board

• $15,000 to develop a new web-based technology that will help producers throughout the province comply with water-use reporting requirements of the new Water Sustainability Act.

Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia

• $175,000 to develop an Agriculture Water Demand Model for selected regions of the province.
• $30,000 to demonstrate the utility of wireless sensor irrigation networks to promote water conservation for container nursery and floriculture operations throughout B.C.

Lisa Deanne Pierce

• $19,550 to plan, manage and assess early season and full canopy sprayer operations for Fraser Valley blueberry operations.

George Powell

• $20,000 to develop a silvopasture e-manual to aid ranchers and resource managers implement and facilitate improved production and integrated BMPs.

Pricewaterhouse Coopers LLP

• $12,488 to provide administration services for the B.C. Market Development Preparedness Program.

Risk Reduction Strategies

• $26,826 to prepare an agricultural emergency management planning template.
• $5,000 to reduce the potential risks and impacts resulting from an environmental emergency on B.C.'s Agriculture Industry by supporting the development of strategic planning documents to ensure supply of feed grains during an emergency event.
• $44,978 to develop an Emergency Management Planning Workbook for small mixed livestock producers.
• $6,635 to plan, organize and facilitate an emergency response exercise for the agricultural stakeholders on Nicomen Island.

ROM Communications Inc.

• $29,193 to upgrade the existing Ministry of Agriculture weather station network.

RWDI AIR Inc.

• $37,837 to complete a spatial and temporal air emission model.

SDL Environmental Consulting

• $2,127 to provide outreach activities and local logistics for collection of cervid samples (heads) for Bovine Tuberculosis and Chronic Wasting Disease surveillance in the Cherryville area.

Simon Fraser University

• $8,000 to research the impact of plant pathogens (fungi, viruses, bacteria, nematodes) on greenhouse wasabi production and evaluate possible methods for disease management, including biocontrol products and fungicides.

Short Creative

• $35,000 to update EFP and BMP reference and planning resources so they can be easily formatted, edited, printed, published on-line or converted to on-line applications.

The University of British Columbia (UBC)

• $101,504 to complete a research project to evaluate and select honey bees for resistance to the parasitic mite Varroa destructor.
• $50,000 to determine the efficacy of nitric oxide treatment for digital dermatitis in cattle and to commercialize an alternative treatment to antibiotics that is suitable for organic and traditional cattle producers.
• $46,000 to conduct research on the microbiological risk factors in B.C. irrigation water affecting the competitiveness of B.C.’s fruit and vegetable sector.
• $25,000 to complete the design, fabrication and debugging work on the radio frequency and microwave system for installation at the UBC Dairy Education and Research Centre.
• $25,000 to ensure improvements will be made to the economic, environmental and social effectiveness of the Ministry’s nutrient management planning tools.
• $20,000 to identify areas of the Central Okanagan Regional District that could be targeted for biodiversity conservation initiatives for Species at Risk on privately owned agricultural land.

Thompson Rivers University

• $33,602 to continue research on hydroponically-finished beef.

Timmenga & Associates Inc.

• $32,845 to identify and evaluate innovative markets and value chains for used mushroom media that can reduce or control disposal costs for farms.

Transform Compost Systems Ltd.

• $42,500 to improve current or develop new BMPs for composting routine poultry and livestock mortalities.

Whatcom Conservation District

• $9,998 to provide technical support for a pilot project to demonstrate the economic and environmental benefits of a manure application risk management system in the B.C. South Coast.

Z.K.S. Holdings Ltd.

• $11,000 to study the epidemiology of Neospora caninum infections in dairy cattle farmed in the Fraser Valley. 

Zbeetnoff Agro-Environmental Inc.

• $32,690 to identify and evaluate innovative markets and value chains for mushroom stems that can reduce or control disposal costs for farms.