‘WOULD OPEN DOOR’ TO NEW BEEF MARKETS

Canadian producers have always focused on what is best for their land and livestock, while meeting the challenges of the market and the needs of consumers. The future will require continued innovation and the adoption of new practices and technologies as an ongoing part of business planning and risk management.

Proposed 30,000-square-foot beef abattoir in Cloverdale would be B.C.’s largest such facility

By Amy Reid, Peace Arch News

A federally licensed beef processing facility is in the works in Surrey, BC.

Beierbach notes that increased consumer demand for certified sustainable beef in the marketplace puts CRSB certified producers in an excellent position moving forward.

“There’s a new building coming forward, a new abattoir, I think that’s the French pronunciation of slaughterhouse,” said Councillor Mike Starchuk. “So Surrey will have a newer facility with a better capacity so people will have the ability to not have to ship an animal to Alberta to have it processed. The applications have gone through the Agricultural and Food Sustainability Advisory Committee.”

McCain Foods is an excellent partner in the FCC Sustainability Incentive Program by providing matching incentive payments to eligible producers. Their framework guides producers on their sustainability journeys. McCain Foods has a goal to implement sustainable agricultural practices across 100 per cent of its potato acreage worldwide by 2030.

The facility is proposed on a 25-acre property within the Agricultural Land Reserve at 5175 184th St. The planned 30,000-square foot abattoir in Cloverdale would process up to 100 head of cattle per day.

According to a city report, that would make it larger than any other processing facility in B.C.. But it would still be small by industry standards, compared to the largest meat processing plants in Alberta that process 3,000 heads of cattle per day.

The proposed facility would be fully enclosed and designed so as to not emit odours. And while there is an operational 6,000-square-foot abattoir on the property now, it’s can only process a limited number of cattle.

FCC continues to look for opportunities to incentivize producers who participate in industry-led sustainability initiatives that have established systems for verification and measurement of best management practices.

Chris Les is general manager of Meadow Valley Meats,

For more information, visit https://www.fcc-fac.ca/en.html and we’ll serve a niche industry for producers and for the market. It’s certainly not going to be a monstrosity of a plant but it’ll be a big upgrade from the site currently.”

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In continuation of the rising trend in the health, wellness and fitness culture, Chicken Farmers of Canada and Skate Canada recently announced a new partnership. Beginning this year, Canadian chicken will be the official protein of Skate Canada.

This partnership will support both Skate Canada’s recreational and competitive programing through the CanSkate program and assistance for high performance athletes. CanSkate is Skate Canada’s flagship learn-toskate program that teaches millions of Canadians to reach their recreational and competitive goals on the ice in communities across Canada. Skate Canada’s highperformance teams compete nationally for Canadian titles and for international medals on the world stage.

“Our shared vision for the promotion of a healthy and active lifestyle will make for an incredibly successful partnership between Chicken Farmers of Canada and Skate Canada,” said Tim Klompmaker, Chair of Chicken Farmers of Canada. “Chicken Farmers of Canada believes that good nutrition is the fuel needed for both mental and physical performance of Canadian athletes.”

“We are thrilled to be partnering with the Chicken Farmers of Canada. To perform at sport, athletes need to fuel their body with healthy choices to succeed on the ice,” said Debra Armstrong, Chief Executive Officer, Skate Canada. “We are looking forward to collaborating with Chicken Farmers of Canada to promote healthy living through both eating and exercise.”

DF: I don’t think being on the island has really impacted us negatively one way or the other. We’ve traveled a lot, met a lot of other farmers and livestock producers in other parts of Canada, and we all seem to have the same issues and same concerns.

CMB: I understand that your farm was the first in Atlantic Canada to be involved in the TESA program.

DF: Yes, I think we were the first farm east of Ontario as far as I understand. I’m not sure why the eastern associations wouldn’t have previously nominated anybody because there are many farms here on PEI doing every bit as much as we are as to attain a high level of sustainability. Anyway, we were very surprised when the PEI Cattleman’s Association nominated our farm.

Chicken Farmers of Canada and Skate Canada both have strong Canadian roots and values around healthy lifestyles.

CMB: And then you were attending the Canadian Beef conference in Calgary and you won.

Chicken Farmers of Canada represents Canada’s 2,800 chicken farmers, raising Canada’s number one meat protein safely, and to the highest standards of care.

Skate Canada is the largest learn-to-skate teaching organization in Canada and is dedicated to creating a nation of skaters both recreationally and competitively.

DF: Yeah! That was a very nice moment for us. But I don’t like to use the word win actually. However, being recognized for our commitment was a real honour. If you want to know the truth, it was a pretty humbling experience. As I said to CBC when they phoned me after the conference, I was

For more information, visit https://www. chickenfarmers.ca/ meatbusiness.ca https://www.yesgroiup.ca