Agriculture

Shannon and Mike Farrell have been running Shamrock Farm for 30 years. (Shannon Farrell/Contributed to Black Press Media)

Vancouver Island farm creates soaps from goat milk

Shamrock Farm in Comox has been using goat milk to make soaps for almost 20 years

Shannon and Mike Farrell have been running Shamrock Farm for 30 years. (Shannon Farrell/Contributed to Black Press Media)
Vancouver innovator Kevin Kung, pictured, is hoping to give farmers an environmentally friendly alternative to open-air burning and foresters a better way to manage flammable forest residue. That work has also won him an award and $5,000 from Mitacs. (Submitted photo: Kevin Kung)

Vancouver man wins award for work aimed at improving air quality

Kevin Kung, of Takachar, developed system to locally convert crop, forest residues into high-value bioproducts

Vancouver innovator Kevin Kung, pictured, is hoping to give farmers an environmentally friendly alternative to open-air burning and foresters a better way to manage flammable forest residue. That work has also won him an award and $5,000 from Mitacs. (Submitted photo: Kevin Kung)
Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a plenary session of the Russia-Africa Summit and Economic and Humanitarian Forum in St. Petersburg, Russia, Thursday, July 27, 2023. (Pavel Bednyakov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

Putin promises no-cost Russian grain shipments to 6 African countries

Putin spoke at the opening session of a two-day Russia-Africa summit

Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a plenary session of the Russia-Africa Summit and Economic and Humanitarian Forum in St. Petersburg, Russia, Thursday, July 27, 2023. (Pavel Bednyakov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
B.C. rancher Suzanne Fradette’s cattle are driven through a forest in an undated handout photo. Fradette says they are just keeping their heads above water amid skyrocketing hay costs. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Suzanne Fradette

B.C. ranchers struggle as drought sends hay prices soaring

Price of feed up about 30 per cent, ranchers say as they fight to stay afloat

B.C. rancher Suzanne Fradette’s cattle are driven through a forest in an undated handout photo. Fradette says they are just keeping their heads above water amid skyrocketing hay costs. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Suzanne Fradette
Cows grazing at W Diamond Ranch. B.C.’s agriculture minister says the province is working to get hay for farmers and ranchers who need it immediately. (W Diamond Ranch).

B.C. working to source hay, feed for farmers in need immediately

Federal program to also provide advance payments for those facing cash-flow challenges

Cows grazing at W Diamond Ranch. B.C.’s agriculture minister says the province is working to get hay for farmers and ranchers who need it immediately. (W Diamond Ranch).
Little Qualicum Cheeseworks in Parksville, B.C., has Canada’s first milk tap. (Photo by Katie Friess)

Milk on tap dispenser from Vancouver Island believed to be Canada’s first

‘Creamy goodness’: pasteurized, whole milk, farm to your reusable bottle

Little Qualicum Cheeseworks in Parksville, B.C., has Canada’s first milk tap. (Photo by Katie Friess)
Becky Young converted a 23-foot 1999 international Thomas school bus with her husband, Gary Eichenauer. Young is the executive director of Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF). (Photo by Gary Eichenauer)
Becky Young converted a 23-foot 1999 international Thomas school bus with her husband, Gary Eichenauer. Young is the executive director of Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF). (Photo by Gary Eichenauer)
Karnail Singh Sidhu started making wine at Kalala Organic Estate Winery in 2006 before opening the doors to the public in 2008. (Brittany Webster)

From engineer to winemaker, an Okanagan success story

Sidhu moved from India to the Okanagan with his family in 1993

  • Jul 9, 2023
Karnail Singh Sidhu started making wine at Kalala Organic Estate Winery in 2006 before opening the doors to the public in 2008. (Brittany Webster)
Silvia and Franz Laffer (middle), with their family Selina, Everly and Kyle Staples (L) and Aletta, Minette, Florian and Sebastian Laffer (R). The Laffer’s own Sunshine Ranch in Horsefly, B.C. Their children and grandchildren live nearby. (Kim Kimberlin Photo/Black Press)
Silvia and Franz Laffer (middle), with their family Selina, Everly and Kyle Staples (L) and Aletta, Minette, Florian and Sebastian Laffer (R). The Laffer’s own Sunshine Ranch in Horsefly, B.C. Their children and grandchildren live nearby. (Kim Kimberlin Photo/Black Press)
French Canadian sommelier Marie-Eve Arseneault started Smithereens Mushrooms with her husband, French chef Alexis Galus. (Photo by Smithereens Mushroom)

A sommelier and chef head to northern B.C. to grow mushrooms

Mushroom growers turn personal consumption into commercial operation in Smithers, B.C.

French Canadian sommelier Marie-Eve Arseneault started Smithereens Mushrooms with her husband, French chef Alexis Galus. (Photo by Smithereens Mushroom)
Copper Mountain Lavender is located in Blewett, B.C., a village west of Nelson. (Photo by Rebecca Plaine)

A planting party outside of Nelson turns one lavender plant into 7,000

Rebecca Plaine of Copper Mountain Lavender says there’s no stress when smelling the fields

Copper Mountain Lavender is located in Blewett, B.C., a village west of Nelson. (Photo by Rebecca Plaine)
Bob Shoker of Shoker Farms in his strawberry fields on Unsworth Road in Chilliwack. (Jenna Hauck/ Black Press Media)

‘You can’t get fresher than that’: Strawberries, field to stand in 20 minutes

Shoker Farms has been in Chilliwack since 1975 and strawberries are their specialty

Bob Shoker of Shoker Farms in his strawberry fields on Unsworth Road in Chilliwack. (Jenna Hauck/ Black Press Media)
George Housty II (L), with his mother, Faye Housty, harvested kelp off the coast of Bella Bella, B.C. Herring also deposit their eggs on hemlock branches, pictured in this photo. (Photo by William Housty)
George Housty II (L), with his mother, Faye Housty, harvested kelp off the coast of Bella Bella, B.C. Herring also deposit their eggs on hemlock branches, pictured in this photo. (Photo by William Housty)
Beekeepers tend to hives in 2020. Beekeepers, aquaculturalists and federally licensed marijuana and hemp growers can now apply for special funding to help protect against extreme heat. (Chelsea Thomsen/Special to Black Press)

Province expands extreme weather funding program to include beekeepers, pot growers

Growers can apply for up to $35,000 in cost-sharing program to protect against heat, floods, fire

Beekeepers tend to hives in 2020. Beekeepers, aquaculturalists and federally licensed marijuana and hemp growers can now apply for special funding to help protect against extreme heat. (Chelsea Thomsen/Special to Black Press)
(The Canadian Press)

Tech, sustainability key to attracting young talent to an evolving agriculture sector

Twelve per cent of farms told Statistics Canada they had a succession plan in 2021

(The Canadian Press)
The Abbotsford Farm and Country Market, celebrating its 20th season, opened Saturday at Jubilee Park. It’s one of about 145 markets across the province that are included in the BC Farmers’ Market Trail app. (John Morrow/Abbotsford News)

Track down B.C.’s best farmers markets this summer with interactive app

BC Farmers’ Market Trail lists 145 farmers markets in regions across the province

The Abbotsford Farm and Country Market, celebrating its 20th season, opened Saturday at Jubilee Park. It’s one of about 145 markets across the province that are included in the BC Farmers’ Market Trail app. (John Morrow/Abbotsford News)
Goat gouda with spicy peppercorns and sweet red peppers from The Farm House Natural Cheeses. (Photo submitted)
Goat gouda with spicy peppercorns and sweet red peppers from The Farm House Natural Cheeses. (Photo submitted)
From left: Maureen, Emily, Jamie, Daniel and Wayne Ralph. The Ralph family, including daughter Kirstie (not pictured), has worked together to create Victoria Cider Co. (Nicole Crescenzi)

Victoria Cider Co. took a risk making keeved cider, but the results set them apart

A lifelong dream creates prize-winning keeved cider

From left: Maureen, Emily, Jamie, Daniel and Wayne Ralph. The Ralph family, including daughter Kirstie (not pictured), has worked together to create Victoria Cider Co. (Nicole Crescenzi)
The original and still working solar panel system on the Bulkley Canyon Ranch put out 155 kWh each. (Photo submitted)

A couple in New Hazelton “harvests the sun” in a solar panel operated ranch

A life reliant on solar panels is tough, but Laurie Gallant and Bill Crosson have it figured out

The original and still working solar panel system on the Bulkley Canyon Ranch put out 155 kWh each. (Photo submitted)
Head winemaker at O’Rourke Family Estate, Nikki Callaway, shows off her award-winning chardonnay. (Brittany Webster/Black Press)

World-class Okanagan winery wins international accolade

Aromatic, soft, floral wine can’t be compared to other regions of the world

  • May 11, 2023
Head winemaker at O’Rourke Family Estate, Nikki Callaway, shows off her award-winning chardonnay. (Brittany Webster/Black Press)