Emma Holmes As BC’s organic industry specialist and a Regional Agrologist, I have been able to meet many members of our organic community across the province. I also get to collaborate with other experts at the Ministry of Agriculture, and I am keen to highlight them and the important work they do, so you can… Keep Reading
Finding Laughter, Balance, and Community On The Farm Kat Roger Nestled in the Okanagan Valley, Lorna and Chris Church operate Grassy Gnome Acres on 65 acres of farmland in Coldstream, BC. At the start, Lorna and Chris never intended to become full-time farmers. In 2008, they were looking for a manageable five acres of forested… Keep Reading
Jessica Chiartas The Organic Science Cluster 4 (OSC4) is a national initiative aimed at advancing organic agriculture and enhancing the sustainability of Canadian agriculture through cutting-edge research and innovation. Funded by Agriculture and Agri-food Canada’s AgriScience Program and contributions from over 80 funding partners, OSC4 leverages public-private partnership to drive collaboration amongst researchers (10 universities… Keep Reading
IFOAM’s Organic World Congress in Taiwan Katie Fettes In early December 2024, I joined hundreds of farmers, researchers, policymakers, and advocates at the 21st IFOAM Organic World Congress (OWC) in Taiwan. It was a week of inspiring conversations, knowledge exchange, and powerful grounding in the transformative potential of organic agriculture to address global challenges. The… Keep Reading
Eva-Lena Lang In the fall of 2024, I had the privilege of accompanying University of British Columbia (UBC) researchers on a two-week field visit to Germany and India. With a focus on agroecology and organic practices, we built relationships with research partners, community organizations, farmers, and farmer communities and gained insights into how farmers can… Keep Reading
David Hanam and Kelly Wang According to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, potatoes are the fifth largest primary agriculture crop in Canada. In 2023, approximately 5.8 metric tonnes of potatoes were produced across Canada, with British Columbia contributing to approximately 2%1. Since 1988, E.S. Cropconsult Ltd. has provided monitoring services to various potato growers in BC’s… Keep Reading
BC Living Lab Sets Sights on Increasing Forage Quality Stacey Santos Nicomen Farm sprawls over 350 acres on Nicomen Island, nestled between the farming community of Deroche, BC and the fertile Fraser River. Ripe for agriculture, this region grows diverse commodities, including Nicomen Farm’s three main streams of revenue: producing grass-fed milk from 120 cows… Keep Reading
Anna Helmer The goal is always to finish planting garlic, which is the last of the field jobs, the morning before the first snow-laden clouds lower into the valley. At that point, the snow will mercifully cover up and temporarily defeat the farm’s problem areas. Currently, those areas are rather difficult to ignore, and in… Keep Reading
