Food For Thought After The ALC Core Review

VICTORIA – As we go aboutour busy lives, we often don’tthink about where our foodcomes from, just that it’s therewhen we need it.British Columbia is home toabout 10% of Canada’s totalnumber of farms: nearly 20,000in all, some big and many small.Three-quarters of B.C. farmsgenerate annual sales of lessthan $50,000.It’s understandable then, whyhalf our farming operators haveoff-farm jobs or businesses.One in four actually put in a 40hour work-week elsewhere. Atthe same time, our averagefarmer’s age is 56 and only 6%are under 40.These numbers clearly raiseimportant questions, which weaimed to address through ourrecent core review looking atthe Agricultural LandCommission, an independenttribunal setup in the 1970s.We think it makes sense to lookat all government operationsfrom time to time to ensurethey’re serving the people ofB.C. the bestway they can.Back in the ’70s, there was arecognition that farmland neededsaving and farmers needed ahelping hand. Forty years later,with many of the same concernslingering, we continue toask ourselves: how do we helpfarming families make a betterliving? How do we encourageyounger people to get into agriculture?And, how do we growmore B.C. foods?This week, we introduced legislationthat helps tackle theseimportant questions. Cognizantof the need to preserve fertilefarm land, the Agricultural LandCommission will remain fullyindependent and fully in chargeof land use decisions.With 10% of the land inside theALR generating 85% of totalfarm sales, clearly that land isinvaluable. That’s why from thiscore review, that land, on thesouth coast, Okanagan andIsland regions remains protected,as it was when the ALC wascreated. Nothing is changing.We are, however, open to discussingwith the ALC, agriculturalsector and Union ofBritish Columbia Municipalitieswhether regulations should beupdated to help farmers growtheir farm businesses. For example,some say the rules aroundprocessing what’s grown on theland restricts them from actuallyproducing more food. We’reopen to further conversationbecause we think this could begood for agriculture and foodsecurity.In the other 90% of the ALR,which generates 15% of B.C.’stotal agricultural sales, we’re givingthe ALC more flexibility toconsider non-agricultural homebasedbusinesses that mighthelp farmers subsidize theirfarming operations, by supplementingtheir income.