Orchard & Vine Year End 2016

Craft Cider Success Story Winery a Trend Setter in Saskatchewan Year-End Interview with B.C. Minister of Agriculture

Year-End Wine, Grape, Berry & Tree Fruit Report

Year End 2016 $6.95

Display Until Jan. 31, 2017 Publication Mail Agreement No. 40838008 www.orchardandvine.net

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Agriculture is our way of life too Meet Graham In 12 years at FCC, Graham’s helped hundreds of Canadian producers build their dreams. Like everyone on your FCC team, Graham knows your industry and he’ll get to know you.

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Photo contributed

The view of Monte Creek Ranch Winery on the South Thompson River. Page 23

Features 23 New Italian Varietal Comes to BC 25 Vancouver Island's Summer of Cider 27 Growing Success in the Land of Living Sky 29 2016 Wine Survey 32 2016 Fruit Report and Survey

Photo by Mike Pepperdine, Sea Cider Farm & Ciderhouse

17 O&V Interviews The Honourable Norm Letnick

Vancouver Island apples from Sea Cider Farm & Ciderhouse.

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Year End 2016

Regulars 6 Publisher's View – Lisa Olson 8 Calendar 9 News & Events 38 Seeds of Growth – Fred Steele 41 Legal Libations – Denese Espeut-Post 43 Green Step – Lindsay Eason

Photo by Province of British Columbia

45 Word on Wine – Laura Kittmer

. Page 25

The first full season that B.C. blueberries are being shipped to China. Page 15

Year End 2016

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 PUBLISHER’S VIEW | LISA OLSON

We’ve Got our Eye on You

Vol. 57, No 6 Year End 2016

A

re there people in your life that you have your eye on? People that are important to you like your family, friends, neighbours, or fellow co-workers? You think about them, are concerned with how they are doing and sometimes worry about them, even though you might have no need to worry.

Established in 1959

Well, we feel like we have our eye on you sometimes too, with our eye on the industry and how you are doing. That’s how we think of the stories we choose that we hope will intrigue you.

Contributors Michael Botner, Kim Elsasser, Denese Espeut-Post, Lindsay Eason, Laura Kittmer, Tamara Leigh, Ronda Payne, Fred Steele

Publisher Lisa Olson Graphic Design Stephanie Symons

In this Year-End Edition, you helped us keep an eye on the industry by allowing us to share your knowledge by answering the questions we asked you in interviews and through our Year End Survey.

It’s very interesting in what you plant, how the weather affects you, ways that you market, sell or export and where to buy supplies. As well as being apart of helping you discover new trends, protect your crops, how to find funding, save money and make money too!

We are especially grateful when reading the survey comments on how much you enjoy reading the magazine, save it for

Sales, Marketing & Social Media Manager Holly Thompson

Photo by Kim Elsasser mpa

You too likely have thoughts about what to grow and how to grow it, insuring you are providing the type of crop that others will enjoy, purchase and be nourished by. How that beautifully ripened fruit will taste or that perfect blend of grapes will produce a superb bottle of wine, one that will please you when opened and others will rave about its taste or earn you a medal.

Circulation info@orchardandvine.net Orchard & Vine Magazine Ltd. 1576 West Kelowna Road West Kelowna, B.C., V1Z 3H5

future reference and how you also pass it along for others to enjoy. We enjoy tending to it and pulling it all together like that perfectly ripened fruit.

One of our readers responded to our survey indicating that they, ‘’Liked the format and lots of interesting articles. It’s an important magazine, which brings the interest of the two farming communities under one roof.”

We like that too!

Best of the year to you, enjoy the magazine!

E-mail: info@orchardandvine.net www.orchardandvine.net Phone: 250-769-2123 Fax: 1-866-433-3349 Orchard & Vine Magazine is published six times a year and distributed by addressed mail to growers, suppliers and wineries in the Okanagan, Kootenays, Fraser Valley, Lower Mainland, Vancouver Island, Washington State and throughout Canada. Orchard & Vine is also available online.

Publications Mail Agreement No. 40838008

Undeliverable copies should be sent to: 1576 West Kelowna Road West Kelowna, BC V1Z 3H5

Providing Canadian Grapevine Solutions BRITISH COLUMBIA Frank Whitehead p. 250-762-9845 c. 250-878-3656 frank@vinetech.ca

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Year End 2016

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 YEAR END | CALENDAR

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Year End 2016

Unified Wine & Grape Symposium January 24 - 26 Sacramento, California www.unifiedsymposium.org 14th Annual Agri-Food Industry Gala January 25 Ramada Plaza and Conference Centre Abbotsford, BC www.bcac.bc.ca 19th Annual Pacific Agriculture Show January 26 - 28 Tradex Exhibition Centre Abbotsford, BC www.agricultureshow.net Islands Agriculture Show February 3 - 4 Port Alberni, BC www.iashow.ca Washington Association of Wine Grape Growers Annual Meeting & Trade Show February 7 - 9 Three Rivers Convention Center, Kennewick, WA, USA www.wawgg.org Vancouver International Wine Fest February 11 - 19 Vancouver, BC vanwinefest.ca 60th Annual Conference International Fruit Tree Association Annual Conference February 19 - 23 Wenatchee, Washington www.ifruittree.org 7th Annual Seminar Wine & Liquor Law February 22 Metropolitan Hotel, Vancouver http://vanwinefest.ca COABC Conference Certified Organic Association of BC February 24 - 26 Coast Bastion, Nanaimo, BC www.certifiedorganic.bc.ca BC Association of Farmers’ Markets Conference & AGM March 3 - 7 Inn At The Quay, New Westminster www.bcfarmersmarket.org

 YEAR END | NEWS & EVENTS

Get Ready for BC’s Largest Agriculture Show of the Year!

Mark your calendar for three days, from January 26 through to January 28.

You’ll be able to check out and ask questions of more than 300 exhibitors displaying the latest technology, equipment, and supplies for the agricultural industry.

The Horticultural Grower’s Short Course has educational workshops you’ll want to attend during this three day event with topics on: Growing techniques and handling; pest management; farm and water management; direct farm marketing,; organics; food production and more! Register for the Growers’ Short Course to find out more. www.agricultureshow.net

www.OkanaganFarms.com OSOYOOS 10 acres strategically situated within walking distance of Osoyoos and lake. 3+ acres of greenhouses churning out cucumbers at record rates. Approx. 4.5 acres of modern orchard, mainly cherries. Shop, cold storage & loads of farm help accommodation.

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SOUTH EAST KELOWNA Central country estate with sprawling 3400 sf rancher & secondary home. Perched above 12.81 acres of prime land. Easy maintenance & low taxes! Continue to lease out or plant your private estate vineyard or orchard.

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EAST KELOWNA Desirable 35 acre bench offering exceptional views of lake, city and valley! Exclusive luxury home & secondary home set amidst rolling orchards.

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EAST KELOWNA 19.9 ACRES near the Harvest Golf Club. Central location just minutes from town. Panoramic Orchard and City views. Approximately 13 acres arable, with 10 acres planted to modern profitable cherry orchard. MLS® $1,850,000

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 YEAR END | NEWS & EVENTS

Revelations Cellars and Pacific Breeze to Open Urban Winery The wine industry has grown past the Okanagan Valley and into several regions across Southern BC, but a full-fledged winery in downtown Vancouver?

That’s the plan for the team at Revelation Cellars and Pacific Breeze Urban Winery, which formally announced their merger and planned expansion at a press conference with MLA Judy Darcy.

CEO Bob Fraser says he formed Revelation to pursue the concept of urban wineries located in major metropolitan centres.

Pacific Breeze is also different from most wineries as it holds a commercial winemaking license, as opposed to an estate license. The winery sources most of its grapes from growers in California and Washington State, although several wines are VQA certified and made from grapes grown in the Okanagan.

“The thing that makes us different from other wineries in Canada is that we follow a philosophy of seeking out the best grapes for a particular type of wine,” says COO Gary Symons. “Our Reserve Merlot comes from the Oak Knoll Vine-

Photo contributed

“The merger with Pacific Breeze Urban Winery was a natural fit,” says Fraser. “It is one of the few true urban wineries in Canada, and the winemaking team also has great experience sourcing top quality grapes from wine regions both in Canada and south of the border.”

Dylan Hamilton winemaker at Pacific Breeze Urban Winery.

yard in the Okanagan, while our Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon comes from the Obsidian Ridge Vineyard in California.”

fund the overall expansion, and investors enjoy a 30 per cent tax rebate from the BC government.

Fraser says the plan is to build a high-end winery in Vancouver for approximately $2 million, while the current Pacific Breeze winery in New Westminster will be expanded to roughly triple its annual production.

“Being approved for a 30 per cent tax rebate under the Venture Capital Tax Credit program was really critical in our being able to raise the necessary funds for our expansion, and to create new jobs in BC,” says Fraser.

The company is raising $6.2 million to

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 YEAR END | NEWS & EVENTS

2017 Replant News

Growth is Natural.

Quality is Intentional.

The B.C. government’s popular sevenyear tree fruit replant program will now assist even more growers with an additional $1 million in funding over the duration of the program, Boundary-Similkameen MLA Linda Larson and Penticton MLA Dan Ashton announced, on behalf of Agriculture Minister Norm Letnick.

The announcement, with BC Fruit Growers’ Association representatives and local growers in attendance, was made in the Okanagan Valley. The new funding is to support B.C.’s tree fruit growers who have made the decision to replant their orchards with high-value, high-quality fruit varieties that are enjoyed by consumers locally and around the world.

For the 2016-17 season, it is estimated that $300,000 of the new funding will be available and this will assist more than two dozen additional projects with 122 additional acres being replanted. In total, the Province’s tree fruit replant program is committing $9.4 million that will see at least 1,600 acres replanted by 2021, providing more than 2,600 jobs each year for the Okanagan.

The application intake for the 201617 season was so successful it was significantly oversubscribed and has now closed. The new funding applications for the 2017-18 season are on the Ministry of Agriculture website.

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 YEAR END | NEWS & EVENTS

Naramata Centre hosts first Cittaslow Long Table Dinner The Naramata Centre welcomed 184 locals, visitors and media around a single long table for a community potluck dinner on Sunday, October 9th.

With support from RDOS Area E and the Naramata Bench Wineries Association, The NaramataSlow Dinner was convened by the local Cittaslow Committee to raise awareness and create conversations around Naramata’s designation as a Cittaslow Community.

Bella Homestead Farm owner, Jay Drysdale provided a pig for the evening that had been raised less than 2 kilometers from the site of the dinner. Drysdale has been raising pigs as a means to maintain the diversity on his biodynamic vineyard and home site of Bella Wines. The fire roasted pig arrived in style – on the front forks of a tractor – fitting considering the environment and theme for the event. “It is so gratifying to see one of our animals used to feed our community.

There is no higher reward as a farmer to see the thanks given for your efforts,” says Drysdale. “It’s truly inspiring to see how this movement is taking hold in our area. For me to be able to contribute in this way is quite an honour.”

NaramataSlow Committee member, Miranda Halliday, says, “Creating and sharing a meal focused on the immense and delicious bounty our community produces,

Photo contributed

The meal was provided by the guests ‘potluck-style’ where guests were challenged to showcase as much Naramata grown, raised or sourced ingredients in their dish to share.

Local wineries set up a tasting experience to showcase the unique terroir of the Naramata Bench.

with friends, neighbours, and visitors alike, feels like a natural tradition in the making, and the right way to foster conversation.”

The beach front property at the Naramata Centre Society was selected as site for this year’s event. A local destination for community and outreach programming for over 65 years, The Centre provided the use of its facilities as the main gathering place on the Thanksgiving Day weekend. Jim Simpson, society member, says “The spirit of togetherness is the foundation of the Centre and we instinctively offered our support because the Cittaslow values are very similar. Today

was a perfect example of what can be done when we all work together.”

A group of Naramata wineries set up an ‘Open Air Wine Lab’ tasting experience to showcase the unique terroir of the Naramata Bench. All wines were sourced from vineyards located within the Cittaslow designated area. Guests were given the opportunity to sample varietals such as Pinot Noir, Syrah, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Viognier and Chardonnay and note the distinct character from specific sites. “There is so much that can be learned about our terroir, our winemakers and our local flavors by tasting wines side by side in this format,” says Halliday.

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 YEAR END | NEWS & EVENTS

Changes to Production Insurance Benefit Tree-fruit Growers The governments of Canada and British Columbia announced changes to the AgriInsurance-Production Insurance program that will help B.C. tree-fruit growers manage the risk of crop losses by hail, spring frost, excessive rain, flooding, drought and wind.

“Production Insurance is an important program to orchardists and we are very pleased with the changes for 2017. The level of consultation we have had from Ministry of Agriculture staff is greatly appreciated. I am impressed with how fast the gap in coverage around wind dam-

age has been closed. The change to depreciation better reflects the actual loss that occurs, making the program more predictable and easy to understand. It is a great improvement.”said Fred Steele, president of the BCFGA. In 2017, the calculation of depreciation is changing for quality loss claims. This will help improve the predictability of claims, better reflect the true value of losses and will more accurately align with the picking and abandonment decisions growers make when crops are severely damaged.

There is no cost increase to the new

New Life for Second Grade Produce Superficially damaged fruit are given a second chance with Mixers and Elixirs. Heidi Kuhn produces small batch shrubs made in Vancouver harvesting local produce.

A shrub is also known as a drinking vinegar, a sweet and tart fruit based concentrate made with organic apple cider vinegar that can be enjoyed with soda water or used as a creative mix for cocktails

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calculation and the change applies to all tree-fruit crops, except cherries.

Wind will be added as a “quality peril” to the B.C. Production Insurance program.

Fruit damaged by wind and remaining on the tree will be adjusted the same as hail damage. There also will be changes for cherry growers, including additional coverage for new cherry plantings and the time between purchasing quality coverage and coverage coming into effect is being extended from two days to four days.

Tree-fruit producers will receive their production insurance renewal packages in the mail in October 2016. The deadline for new applications and renewals is Nov. 30, 2016. Tree-fruit crops eligible for purchase of production insurance coverage include apples, cherries, apricots, peaches, nectarines, pears, plums and prunes.

AgriInsurance is a federal-provincialproducer cost-shared program that stabilizes a producer's income by minimizing the economic effects of production losses caused by natural hazards.

Year End 2016 13

 YEAR END | NEWS & EVENTS

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By Ronda Payne On the heels of the Arctic Golden and Arctic Granny apples, the Arctic Fuji apple from Okanagan Specialty Fruits (OSF) was deregulated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA APHIS) in the early fall of 2016. The other two varieties of specialty apples made their way south in February of 2015, although the petition for the genetically engineered (GE) fruit began in 2012.

There are two schools of thought around the new apples which are expected to be available to consumers in North American in early 2017. Some people want the fruit, which has been altered through science-based gene silencing. Arctic apples do not brown when cut, dropped or bitten. OSF also claims the process does not alter the taste, as they feel the visual appeal of the apples will increase consumption of fruit - it has been proven in studies that children will eat apple slices far more readily than a whole apple. The other group, which doesn’t want the apples, is further divided into two groups: those who oppose genetic modification to food and those who are concerned about the potential impact to Okanagan growers due to a possible perception that all apples out of the region are genetically modified.

OSF has received positive feedback on the apples so far, yet whether consumers choose to purchase them will be the deciding factor of success when they are available next year. Growers both north and south of the border have planted orchards with Arctic varieties.

The first commercial harvest occurred in early October 2016 with the Arctic Golden. It will be processed into sliced apples and sold in test markets in 2017 according to statements from Intrexon Corporation. OSF is based in Summerland, but is a wholly owned subsidiary of Virginia-based Intrexon Corporation, a company involved in creating biologically-based products.

 YEAR END | NEWS & EVENTS

BC's Fresh Blueberries Now Being Welcomed in a Big Market

“The B.C. blueberry industry is excited about expanding international markets and especially this new opportunity to provide our healthy, sweet and quality fresh B.C. blueberries to China. 2016 will be the first full season of shipments to Mainland China and our registered growers and suppliers have been working hard to ensure the highest standards. British Columbia is one of the few regions able to ship fresh blueberries to China.” said Debbie Etsell of the BC Blueberry Council.

British Columbia is one of the largest highbush blueberry-growing regions in the world, producing about 96% of the Canadian production of cultivated blueberries. In 2015, B.C. farmers harvested about 70,000 tonnes of blueberries, an increase of 7%. Exports of B.C.’s blueberries accounted for $218 million, up more than 29% from 2014.

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Photo by Province of British Columbia

This is the first full season that B.C. blueberries are being shipped to China. Last summer, a small amount of fresh blueberries were sent to the country to ensure that the packingand-shipping process met all the requirements in the agreement between the governments of Canada and China. The test run was a success. Now B.C. will increase the amount of fresh blueberry shipments to China this season and B.C. blueberry growers could be looking at the potential of up to $65 million in exports a year, once the agreement is fully implemented.

Workers at Blueridge Produce in Langley packaging fresh blueberries for the journey to China.

“We are very proud to be one of the first B.C. companies to be approved for exporting fresh blueberries to China. We are looking forward to developing long-term relationships and to increase demand by the Chinese consumer for B.C.’s exceptional quality blueberries.” said Rhonda Driediger, of Blueridge Produce and Driediger Farms.

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 YEAR END | NEWS & EVENTS

DAS to Give Okanagan Tree Fruit Growers Edge on Pest Management The changing climate in the Okanagan has broad implications for agricultural pest control, including increasing populations of problem species, and the arrival of new pests in the region. A recently initiated project – adapting a successful pest management decision support tool, developed by Washington State University – will provide Okanagan tree fruit growers with an important new resource to improve orchard management.

“This is the Cadillac of pest management decision support sys-

tems: tried, tested, and loved by Washington growers because it saves them time and money and improves the efficacy of pest management. The benefits to the Okanagan will extend beyond the growers – being more precise with chemical applications helps to maintain beneficial insect populations, reduces environmental impacts, and makes life even more pleasant for the communities bordering the orchards.”said Melissa Tesche, Acting General Manager, Okanagan-Kootenay Sterile Insect Release Program.

Washington State University’s Decision Aid System (DAS) is a web-based platform designed to transfer time-sensitive information on pest management to orchardists, using real-time, local weather data and scientific pest and disease management information to help predict and manage pests and diseases.

Funding to adapt the Decision Aid System to the Okanagan is part of a $300,000 investment in the implementation of the Okanagan Regional Adaptation Strategy by the federal and provincial governments through Growing Forward 2, a federalprovincial-territorial initiative.

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A new on-line system will help new entrants achieve certified organic status. The Certified Organic Associations of BC (COABC) will lead the development of an Organic Online System, through $117,000 in funding from the governments of Canada and British Columbia.

COABC will conduct consultations and outreach with growers and stakeholders over the coming months to ensure that the project considers stakeholder needs. A pilot of the system will launch in 2017, with full implementation scheduled for January 2018.

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Four Years as B.C. Minister of Agriculture

By Tamara Leigh

It has been four years since Norm Letnick was first appointed agriculture minister in B.C., and with an election coming in the spring, he is keen to make sure producers are aware of what the government has accomplished. Turn to the next page for our Year in Review conversation.

Year End 2016 17

O&V What were the highlights for the tree fruit and orchard sectors from the ministry this year?

Norm Letnick We bumped up the amount of money for the replant program last year. We were at $8.4 million, and raised it up to $9.4 million because of the pent up demand for funding, particularly up front. We found the money within the ministry, so we didn't have to go begging to anyone else, and were able to use those funds to help out with the replant program.

The ministry published our first ever export catalogue. It contains items in there from food and orchards, wine and blueberries, tree fruit products as well.

There are 100 companies in the export catalogue that are ready for export. It includes pictures of their products, contact information, descriptions of what they are producing, and minimum order quantities. The catalogue will be used by our trade representatives around the world to continue to increase sales that our BC companies have.

We also continued with the Buy Local program for another year, so it is up to $8 million over four years. We have local companies across BC taking advantage of these 50-cent dollars to help people recognize the importance of buying local products.

O&V This fall you made a unique pitch for the new food donation tax credit, what inspired that?

We've done a lot in the past four years, everything from the Buy Local program to the replant program ‌ but when this is all said and done the only thing people will remember me by is that picture. – Norm Letnick

Norm Letnick The food donation tax credit was announced in February as part of budget speech. It allows orchardists, farmers, ranchers, fishers, anybody with primary agriculture can donate their products to a registered non-profit like a foodbank or school meal program, and not only would they get charitable donation receipt, but now they will also get 25% tax credit.

18 Year End 2016

This summer when I was travelling around the province talking to producers, I asked them if they were aware of the tax credit, and very few people were.

It's very expensive to advertise around the province, and we didn't want to use taxpayer dollars for advertising a tax credit. I wanted to find an inexpensive way of drawing attention to a good program, then I came across a picture of a

woman body painted in mixed vegetables, and it sparked the idea.

We've done a lot in the past four years, everything from the Buy Local program to the replant program to money for high tech, helping new entrants get into the industry, a new agri-foods plan, the export catalogue, but when this is all said and done the only thing people will remember me by is that picture.

#bcfoodtaxcredit program launched To increase awareness of the farmers’ food donation tax credit that the British Columbia government announced in Budget 2016, Agriculture Minister Norm Letnick is reaching out to B.C. farmers to get social, get giving and get an income tax credit.

Farmers and producers who donate qualifying agricultural products to registered charities (such as food banks and school meal programs) are eligible to receive a tax credit for their donation.

“B.C. food banks rely on B.C. farmers to provide low-income families and individuals with a variety of healthy food. Food bank clients are vulnerable to rising food prices. Greater awareness of the new tax credit will encourage more farmers to donate to food banks resulting in more nutrition for our clients.”said David Purdon, operations manager, Central Okanagan Food Bank.

The credit is worth up to 25% of the fair-market value of the qualifying agricultural product and must be claimed in the same year that a charitable-and-

other-gifts tax credit for individuals or deduction is claimed for the donation by a corporation. The farmers’ food donation tax credit is in addition to the charitable-and-other-gifts credit or the deduction.

To help people become aware of the program, Letnick is encouraging everyone to post pictures on social media of themselves with agricultural products that are eligible for the credit with the #bcfoodtaxcredit.

“You can have the best program in the world, but if no one knows about it its effectiveness is limited. I hope these pictures and other social media postings will increase awareness and result in more donations. I am thankful such a wide range of great tasting and healthy food is grown and raised in British Columbia, as I am for the community spirit and benefits that the agrifoods sector brings to communities across our province…I challenge B.C. farmers to help spread the word about the B.C. government’s tax credit, and the roles and benefits farmers bring to our communities." Norm Letnick, Minister of Agriculture.

O&V Can you tell us about the latest updates for production insurance?

Photos by Province of British Columbia

Norm Letnick

Norm Letnick, Minister of Agriculture, joined the 96-year-old Margaret Baird of Cobble Hill, on August 27, 2016 to celebrate the agricultural industry in the area. Margaret is the proud matriarch of four generations of Cobble Hill farming families.

We decided that the calculation for depreciation should change for quality loss claims, like hail damage for example, because we wanted to better reflect true value of losses. Moving forward with that decision that will align with picking and abandonment decisions made when crops are severely damaged. There is no cost increase to the new calculation, and it applies to all tree fruit crops except cherries. We've also added wind as a quality peril to the BC production insurance program. Fruit damaged by wind and remaining on the tree will be treated the same as hail damage.

Year End 2016 19

When I first started this four years ago, there were a lot of struggles, and a lot of people in the industry were not making money… people now come see me with different challenges, like how do I get to the export market, or where do I find labour.

– Norm Letnick There will also be changes for cherry growers, including additional coverage for new cherry plantings and the time between purchasing coverage and coverage coming to effect has been extended from two days to four days.

etc. Work with our counterparts in the federal government to continue to work on identifying opportunities and threats, and also look at how we can develop proper water policies that will help us around the province in different areas.

O&V

With my colleague from the federal government, MP Stephen Fuhr, I was recently looking at new software being adapted from Washington State that will help farmers understand when is the best time to apply their pesticides to reduce the amount they apply, or frequency of application. That’s one more tool in the toolbox in the fight against pests that we will see more of with climate change coming to an orchard near you.

With the release of the Okanagan regional adaptation strategy, what priority is the Ministry giving to climate change adaptation, and what is available to assist growers in the Okanagan?

Norm Letnick There are a lot of opportunities in BC agriculture, and some of them are being brought forth by climate change.

We have more heat units out there, so a greater variety of crops in parts of the province than we have ever seen before.

At the same time, that brings us the challenge of needing to store water. If we are looking at earlier freshets and less water in the late summer season then we have to think about how we are going to store fresh water available earlier in the year so that later in the year when we really need it, it will be available for agriculture.

Region by region, the government has invested about $3 million to help farmers and ranchers throughout the province prepare climate change strategies, how to adapt to the different climate change opportunities and challenges. We now have regional adaptation strategies developed in six key areas of the province through that project.

We've also funded over 40 projects that address related risks that come with drought or excessive moisture and pests, 20 Year End 2016

O&V What does the Climate Leadership Plan hold for agriculture in the Interior and Okanagan?

Norm Letnick There are two parts of that for us: what we can do to reduce carbon footprint, and adaptation. Part one is done. We calculated that agriculture plays a role in about 3% of emissions in the province, and we're looking at helping the industry reduce that. Things like how we work the land is one of the key areas, and we will provide our support to the industry based on that particular plan.

Next phase is adaptation, and a big part of that is based on regional strategies.

We’ll be trying to take advantage of more heat units, and looking at partnership with our federal partners for some infrastructure dollars to help with water storage.

Christie Clarke and Norm Letnick host the Duke and Duchess

O&V With the pending legalization of marijuana, will BC consider it an agricultural crop?

Norm Letnick Last year, the government passed new policies and regulations. That said, if you want to grow medical cannabis on your farm, you should be able to do so under the protection of the right to farm act, but not benefit from the tax reduction

that you would get if you were growing potatoes. The purpose was to make sure people didn't have incentives to move their facilities out of industrial areas and onto cheaper farmland.

Now the new federal government is planning to decriminalize marijuana. Provincially, we are working to identify with the Ministry of Health and other ministries that have something to do with growing and distribution of marijuana, what that might mean if the federal government actually follows through on that commitment. If they follow through on their commitment, marijuana will be a crop. If they don't, it will continue to be treated as medical marijuana.

O&V What is the highlight of your fourth year as agriculture minister?

Photo by Province of British Columbia

Norm Letnick

of Cambridge at the Mission Hill Family Estate Winery for the Taste of British Columbia event.

I'm bolstered by the strength of the industry. When I first started this four years ago, there were a lot of struggles, and a lot of people in the industry were not making money. We brought in some programs, we bolstered export capacity, we worked closely with BCAC, and we modernized the ALC. A number of initiatives that we have done with the industry are paying off. We've had record growth and record profits over the last few years. People now come see me with different challenges like how do I get to the export market, or where do I find labour.

These are all good challenges to have as opposed to the ones you have when people are losing money. â–

B.C. Government Publishes Export Ready Business Catalogue This catalogue will help more B.C. companies start their journey of exporting high-quality B.C. foods.

The catalogue features close to 100 B.C. producers of fruits and vegetables, seafood, meat, packaged food, natural health products and beverage makers, and all of them are ready to sell. Each profile includes an introduction to the company or association and their products, their current export markets, and markets they are interested in expanding to. The guide represents B.C.’s diverse agri-food and seafood sector, and includes everything from sea urchins to cereals, and waffles to wine. The guides will be available in multiple languages, online and at trade offices and shows.

Year End 2016 21

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Sweet Grapes and New Owners

By Michael Botner The “little sweet one” comes to BC from Italy

Photos contributed

Mainly grown in the Piedmont region of north west Italy, Dolcetto is gaining a toehold in the Okanagan. Despite the name, which means “little sweet one” in Italian, the low acidity, early-ripening variety produces large quantities of easy-drinking, dry, red wine mainly for local consumption. But finer examples are emerging, and the secret seems to be the light marl soils found in the Alba district in Piedmont. In the Okanagan, Dolcetto has found a home at Stag’s Hollow Winery in Okanagan Falls. When owners Linda Pruegger and Larry Gerelus acquired Shuttleworth Creek Vineyard 2 km south of their home vineyard in 2012, they decided to plant Dolcetto vines along with Pinot Noir, Gamay Noir, Tempranillo, Vidal, and later Orange Muscat and Albariño. Stag’s Hollow’s winemaker Dwight Sick enjoys the challenge of crafting exemplary wines from newly introduced varieties.

Sydney Valentino, winemaker at Conviction Wines.

BC's Oldest Wine Brand Changes Its Name This Year

2015 Dolcetto

Conviction is the new name for Calona Wines, the longest continuing winery in BC. For some, it is hard to say goodbye to the name that survived many trials, tribulations and owners since the winery made its debut in 1931 as Domestic Wines & By-Products (changing to Calona Wines only a few years later).

Looking to revitalize a familiar name and label that may be past its prime, marketing wizards at Andrew Peller Ltd., Calona’s parent company, set out to find a new brand. Conviction pays tribute to the acumen of founders like Guiseppi Ghezzi, Peter Casorso, Cap Capozzi, W.A.C. Bennett, Monsignor W.B. McKenzie, et al. Founders are depicted on the new labels as edgy, unsentimental caricatures with a humourous twist. Under the supervision of winemaker Sydney Valentino, Conviction is made at the same sprawling, Andrew Peller facility in downtown Kelowna, which also produces Sandhill and Peller Estate Winery’s BC wines.

Combining quality and character, 2015 Dolcetto from Stag’s Hollow does not need a tannin level to make an impression.

Deep ruby and viscous in the glass, it exudes juicy, succulent, richly-extracted black cherry, blackberry and plum fruit, nuances of licorice, black pepper and mushroom, and a flourish of bitter almond on the finish. Accompanies pizza and pasta with tomato sauce, or try with South African Babotie. $21.99 ****½

Conviction 2015 Open a bottle of Conviction 2015 “The Industrialist” Sovereign Opal and find that, despite the new label, it features the latest rendition of delightful wine that helped to establish Calona’s creds as a producer of great quality wines at affordable prices.

As a cross of Muscat and Maréchal Foch, the variety emerged out of Summerland Research Station trials in the 1970s and has been grown at Casorso Vineyard where it produced its first crop in 1987. Calona and now Conviction have found a winner in this winter hardy, early-ripening white variety. Notes of lychee and custard accentuate the flower-scented nose and the crunchy, off-dry palate exhibits essences of anise, white pepper, bartlett pear and lemon peal. An everyday thirst-quencher, 2015 Sovereign Opal has the chutzpah to handle lighter fish, poultry and pork dishes as well as mildly spicy Asian food. $13.99 ****

Emptying the fermenter at Stags Hollow.

Year End 2016 23

New Owners at Mt. Boucherie Estate Winery Despite little change in outward appearance, the transfer of West Kelowna’s Mt. Boucherie Winery to new owners ranks as a major BC wine story in 2016. The origins of Mt. Boucherie stretch back to 1975, when Mehtab Gidda, a Punjabi wheat farmer who immigrated to Canada, first purchased a vineyard on the Westside. Intending to convert to apples, he changed his mind when he realized that the market was more favourable for grapes, and vines were easier to grow. Eventually, vineyard holdings increased to include 11 acres surrounding the winery, 37 acres in Okanagan Falls, 60 acres in Oliver and 161 acres in the Similkameen Valley. That and annual production of 25,000 cases make Mt. Boucherie an important player in BC wine industry circles. Enter four Vancouver-based investors who acquired Mt. Boucherie prior to the start of the 2016 harvest.

With accomplished winemaker Jim Faulkner on board for his sixth harvest, they brought in a management team headed by food industry specialist Craig McCulloch. They did not waste any time kicking off the process of upgrading and expanding plantings and facilities by replacing 75 acres of vines, adding a new crush pad, crusher-destemmer and conveyer belt, and purchasing 120 new French oak barrels.

2013 Family Reserve Syrah At over 160 acres, Mt. Boucherie’s largest vineyard holdings are found in the Similkameen Valley where the stony, gravely and silty soils retain summer heat long after the sun sets. It is the source of fruit for 2013 Family Reserve Syrah, a classy, powerfully-structured red wine, 90% aged in French oak for 18 months. It delivers ripe, richly textured plum, bing cherry and blackberry fruit, with expressions of licorice, black pepper, vanilla and toasty oak, cushioned by silky, finely-textured tannins.

Cellar for 3 to 5 years or enjoy now with a roast rack of lamb. $35 ****½

Monte Creek Ranch Creating a new winery on the banks of the South Thompson River near Kamloops takes a farsighted entrepreneur, much like the pioneers of past glory. A modern day adventurer, Gurjit Sidhu of Sidhu and Sons Nursery in Mission acquired 1,200 acres in 2009, consisting of history-rich, 900-acre Monte Creek Ranch on the south side of the Thompson and 300 acre Lion’s Head Ranch on the north shore. 40 acres of grapes at the Monte Creek Ranch site includes such early-ripening grape varieties as Maréchal Foch and five cold hardy U. of Minnesota hybrids, recommended by retired provincial government grape expert John Vielvoye, such as Marquette and La Crescent. A cooler site on the valley floor, windmills are used for air movement to reduce the risk of frost. The land is also used to grow Haskap berries, house beehives and produce honey, and raise grass-fed cattle. On the wind-whipped north side of the valley, 20 acre Lion’s Head Vineyard is more favourable to vinifera varieties such as Riesling and a trial plot for Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, as well as Minnesota hybrids.

Considering the dangers of shoulder season frost and extreme winter cold on the northern periphery, Minnesota hybrids provide a safety net for venturesome growers. They are sure to ripen well and produce concentrated berries from the sun-baked summers along the South Thompson. Any way you slice it, consumers and visitors to Monte Creek Ranch’s recently-launched “mission-style” winery astride the Trans-Canada Highway will be curious about these strange, new-fangled varieties and describing them as complex hybrid crosses will not be sufficient.

The following review features a successful, affordable red blend sure to please many.

2015 Hands Up Red

Photos contributed

In this easy-drinking blend, the mix includes Marquette and Frontenac Noir, Minnesota hybrids grown at Monte Creek Ranch, and Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc sourced from the Okanagan Valley. The softly-textured palate features fresh, ripe, candy-like cherry and blackberry fruit, infused with a splash of cranberry, plus notes of pepper and licorice. Pair with hearty beef stew.

Jim Faulkner providing a sample of the wine at Mt. Boucherie Winery.

$16.49 **** All ratings out of 5 stars*****

24 Year End 2016

Photo by Mike Pepperdine, Sea Cider Farm & Ciderhouse

VANCOUVER ISLAND SUMMER OF CIDER Sea Cider is a farm-based cidery with a ten acre farm that is home to more than 1,300 apple trees, made up of over 50 varieties of heritage apples.

By Tamara Leigh DUNCAN - 2016 was a gift of a season for many of the fruit growers on Vancouver Island. The weather seemed to align for a perfect blend of good pollination, early establishment and fruitful ripening.

“Everything was a few weeks ahead of schedule this year,” says Roger Dosman of Alderlea Vineyard in the Cowichan Valley.

“All of our grapes ripened fully and we were finished harvesting by Thanksgiving. We have great fruit, now it’s up to me to make good wine.”

Photo contributed

Across the island, grape, berry and apple growers all reported excellent growing conditions and yields. Quinn Ehrler operates Pressing Matter, Vancouver Island’s only mobile fruit press.

“This year was probably the biggest year we’ve had crop wise.

We’ve pressed over 200,000 pounds just this season,” says Ehrler.

Quinn Ehrler operates Pressing Matter, Vancouver Island’s mobile fruit press.

Pressing Matter is in their fifth season of processing apples and pears for customers the Comox Valley to the Saanich Peninsula, as well as Port Alberni, Hornby Island, Quadra Island, and Saltspring. While they press fruit for commercial cideries, much of their business comes from events where people in the community can bring fruit from their own trees.

our machine, and at least 5000 pounds to make it worthwhile to mobilize to a location.”

Island Cideries Seeing Steady Growth SAANICH - Craft cider has strong roots on Vancouver Island, and as the category continues to surge in popularity with consumers, the number of cideries is growing.

“It brings communities together, and people enjoy watching the press, it’s entertaining,” says Ehrler. “It seems like everybody has at least one tree. We need at least 100 pounds to run

“It has been an interesting upsurge in the market. Both supply

Year End 2016 25

Photo by Mike Pepperdine, Sea Cider Farm & Ciderhouse

and demand have been growing in BC and the US,” says Kristen Needham, cidermaker at Sea Cider on the Saanich Peninsula.

“For the public, cider is really relatable - ordinary people grow apples. The slow food movement, the local food movement, and the growth in the craft beer industry are also having an influence and creating opportunities for ciders.”

Sea Cider has been making traditional craft ciders since 2007.

They produce a variety of single-variety and blended ciders using different varietals, yeasts and production styles to create unique and ciders ranging from brut dry to dessert styles.

In recent years the veteran cideries on the Island, Sea Cider and Merridale, have seen new cideries opening their doors to meet the demand. Blue Moon Organic Fruit Winery expanded to include a Ciderworx and launched their line of Raven’s Moon ciders.

“Our cider side is going crazy, we can’t keep up,” says George Ehrler, winemaker, and cider master at Blue Moon. “We’ve always made a still cider, but it was a hard sell. We took that same product and put bubbles in it and I can’t keep it on the shelf.”

Victoria-based Tod Creek Craft Cider has been making and sell-

ing craft cider since 2014, and opened their tasting room near Prospect Lake this September. Salt Spring Wild Cider is making cider from the heritage cider apples that grow on Salt Spring, and plans are rumoured to be in the works for a handful of new cideries from the Cowichan Valley to Denman Island.

According to the Needham, there is still room for the cider industry to grow.

“I welcome more cideries to come into the industry,” she says, with a cautionary note. “We’re still seeing strong sales growth in BC, but having said that, we have also been selling into the US for about six years, where there has been huge growth in the number of cideries. We’re starting to see the competitive pinch in the US, but hasn’t happened in BC yet.”

Coastal Black shifts focus to exports BLACK CREEK – Export opportunities continue to grow for BC’s wine producers, including the Comox Valley’s Coastal Black Estate Winery. The growing business opportunity overseas has resulted in a shift to the business back home.

Coastal Black is one of the largest berry farms on Vancouver Island, growing over 80 acres of blackberries, raspberries and blueberries for fruit wines and the fresh market. Over the years they have also put a lot of energy into establishing the winery as an agri-tourism destination, including an outdoor bistro and seasonal attractions.

“We are scaling back on winery events right now,” says owner and winemaker, Abel O’Brennan. “The growth in our export market has allowed us to pull back from some of those other things that required a ton of effort.”

Photo contributed

Coastal Black’s first foray into the Asian market came when they attended the Hong Kong Wine and Spirits Fair in November 2013. They started exporting 18 months ago, and have really seen sales take off over the past year. Currently 65% of their wine is sold internationally.

Raven's Moon Cider by Blue Moon Farm, Winery and Ciderworx.

26 Year End 2016

“It is all going into three different provinces in China. They are definitely loving the blueberry wine; that is primarily what we are exporting along with some meads,” says O’Brennan. “It has been a steady growth from the first orders of a pallet or two to where we are now sending full container loads.” ■

LIVING SKY WINERY PAVING THE WAY FOR CRAFT PRODUCERS IN SASKATCHEWAN

By Tamara Leigh

S

ue Echlin and Vance Lester are on a mission to put Saskatchewan on the map as a Canadian winemaking region. While the Prairie province may not hold great promise for grapes, the founders of Living Sky Winery are crafting table and dessert/port-style wines from locally grown fruits, including cherries, rhubarb, raspberries and currants.

“We have a really cool thing going on in Saskatchewan that I like to call Seed to Sip producers, which means we can control everything in the process from planting to packaging all on the same farm,” Echlin told the Canadian Farm Writers’ Federation at their annual conference in September. “The craft alcohol industry is really starting to come alive here.”

We went on a wine tour in B.C. and thought, ‘hey, why don’t we do that in Saskatchewan?’ By the time we figured out why you shouldn’t do that in Saskatchewan it was too late.

– Sue Echlin Living Sky Winery was the second craft alcohol company in Saskatchewan, leading the way for a surging number of craft brewers, wineries and distillers in the province. The idea took root when the couple was looking for a way to make a living on the farm outside of commodity-based agriculture.

“We went on a wine tour in B.C. and thought, ‘hey, why don’t we do that in

Saskatchewan?’ By the time we figured out why you shouldn’t do that in Saskatchewan it was too late,” says Echlin with a laugh. “We turned our triticale field into an orchard, and we now have 22 acres of fruit.”

In 2005, they planted 45,000 trees and shrubs with an old 1920’s tree-planting machine, including apples, cherries, raspberries, black currants, and 10 acres

Year End 2016 27

Sue Echlin is also committed to raising the bar for the entire craft alcohol industry in Saskatchewan.

Over the past five years, the Saskatchewan industry has grown from only two wineries to 32 craft alcohol producers, including 16 breweries, eight distilleries, six wineries, one meadery and one cidery.

To give this growing industry a voice, Echlin started the Saskatchewan Artisan Wine and Spirits Association.

Photo contributed

“About two years ago we decided that having an organization that could have formal discussions with government was important,” says Echlin. “Originally we were going to start one big group including the craft brewers, but beer has it’s own distinct issues, whereas distilleries and wineries are fairly similar.”

Fruit wines from Living Sky Winery are turning heads and winning multiple awards..

of Bavarian wine rhubarb. Since then, they have modernized equipment and mechanized as much of the harvest as possible.

to New York City and stood toe to toe with these grape wines adds legitimacy to what we are trying to do and is very important.”

“The only thing we haven’t been able to mechanize is rhubarb, which you have to pull by hand. We harvested 35,000 pounds of rhubarb this year,” she says.

“It’s really hard to find people who are willing to do the hard manual labour of picking, washing and peeling 35,000 pounds of rhubarb, so we work very closely with our local Hutterite colony.”

Their success is by design, not luck. With the understanding that they had to win over curious consumers on the first sip, they hired renowned wine maker, Dominic Rivard, to help develop their line of wines.

In 2012, Sue Echlin and Vance Lester were named Canada’s Outstanding Young Farmers, and used the exposure to continue to build buzz around their product, and bring the needs of the craft wine and spirits industry to the attention of the provincial ministry of agriculture.

As for the wines, their success speaks for itself. Living Sky fruit wines have won 28 national and international medals over the past five years, including double gold at the 2016 New York Wine Festival for their Juliett cherry port.

“The throwback from that award has been huge. We have gotten orders for Juliett from as far away as Denmark,” says Echlin. “International awards are a great way to help get the word out there, but it’s also a way of legitimizing what we’re doing, especially as a fruit winery. Being able to say that we went 28 Year End 2016

“We knew that people would try us the first time because we were local, and if we didn’t make an exceptional product, they wouldn’t try us a second time,” says Echlin.

Today their core products include rhubarb and black currant table wines, as well the cherry port-style wine, Juliett.

Within their commitment to quality, Living Sky Winery still adheres to the experimental ethos of a craft winery with a strong sense of passion and play.

“Three years ago we found a grower that had 3,000 extra pounds of cantelope that had frozen on him, so we made a nice cantelope ice wine,” Echlin recounts. “We think it’s the world’s first cantelope ice wine, and it’s definitely the first wine made from Saskatchewan cantelopes.”

Building a Saskatchewan wine & spirits industry Beyond the success of Living Sky Winery,

While the association was not fully incorporated until September this year, they have been working closely with the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority to ease restrictions on liquor sales and level the playing field for local wineries and distillers.

The new regulation came into effect at the beginning of October, allowing consumers to purchase Saskatchewan wines and craft spirits directly from producers, and have them delivered to their doorstep. Previously, consumers were restricted to wines or spirits that were available for sale through Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority stores.

“As of October 9, we will have probably have the best jurisdiction in the entire country to make craft alcohol in. The government is incredibly supportive,” says Echlin, explaining that craft wine and spirits offer a diversified market for Saskatchewan-grown products including fruit, grains and honey.

“Even though we are craft, quality, small and independent, we have a huge impact on the provincial economy. Last year alone, our membership represented $1.9M in community spending, and $2.1M in salaries,” she says. “This is going to continue to grow, and I think this is why the government of Saskatchewan has been so positive and embraced us so greatly is they recognize that those of us doing craft alcohol can make a huge impact on this province. As long as we remain committed to who we are and committed to quality, the future is wide open.” ■

Orchard & Vine Wine Survey – We asked … You answered

By Michael Botner Growers and wineries took the time during a hectic harvest and crush period to respond to the Orchard & Vine 2016 Wine Survey. Although most respondents represent the diversity of the Okanagan Valley, we also received several replies from nearly all other wine-producing areas of BC including Vancouver Island, the Lower Mainland, the Shuswap and the Kootenays.

Favourite Varieties Winner of 2016 favourite varietals are Pinot Noir in red and Pinot Gris for white. Foch is the runner-up, while honourable mention goes to Pinot Blanc, Chardonnay and Merlot. A few wineries mentioned grapes that took both favourite and largest crop status: Riesling, Pinot Noir, Merlot, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Blanc, and Chardonnay.

Intriguing Varieties It is worthwhile to note the most intriguing varieties picked as winery’s favourites: Albariño, Cabernet Libre, Grüner Veltliner and Petit Verdot.

The list of newly-planted varieties consists of Sauvignon Blanc, Syrah, Roussanne and Petite Milo, while varieties that have been removed include Merlot, Chardonnay and Kerner.

75% of the wineries have sustainable wine programs in place, include it as part of their expansion plans, follow sustainability principles without a formal plan, or plan to increase their focus on sustainability. Respondents referred to organic certification and sustainable/biodynamic

Has the growth in the number of wine tour companies increased your wine sales?

Varietals What was your best varietal grown this year?

YES 58% 13% PINOT NOIR 13% PINOT GRIS

NO 42%

10% CHARDONNAY

Has a winery opened in your area, and if so, what's the impact?

10% MARECHAL FOCH 10% MERLOT

• Brings more traffic to the neighbourhood but not necessarily more sales.

3% ALBARINO

3% CAB FRANC 3% GAMAY 3% GEWURZTRAMINER 3% GRUNER VELTLINER

Did you plant any new crops or remove any this year?

NO 80%

IF SO, WHAT ARE THEY? • Planted Petit Milo • Pulled Chardonnay • Removed Kerner - Planted Roussanne • Removed Merlot - Planted Sauvignon Blanc • Removed Merlot - Planted Syrah

3% PETIT VERDOT 3% SAUVIGNON BLANC

• Probably dilutes business but also attracts more people to the area

YES 20%

48% MORE THAN THREE

3% CABERNET LIBRE

• Makes us more of a destination and as such supports our business

• S aturation of the market

20% ONE

6% RIESLING

33% ONE - TWO

6% PINOT BLANC

Year End 2016 29

Orchard & Vine Wine Survey – We asked … You answered farming, composting facilities, renewable power, a grape marc recycling system, IPM pest and disease management, improving water efficiency and dry farming.

Sustainability

Most wine is being sold in tasting rooms, while the least utilized sales outlets are government liquor stores and farmers’ markets.

While some responding wineries already exported their wines overseas, many indicated an interest in future exports to the USA, Asia and Europe, and about half of those would like to learn more about more about the nuts and bolts of exporting wine.

Nearly all respondents reported that one or more new wineries have opened up in their neighbourhood and some appreciated more wineries in their area. By a 60/40 ratio, respondents indicated that the increase in wine tour companies have helped wine sales, although in some cases only slightly. ■

YES 75%

Do you participate in a sustainable wine-making or grape growing program?

NO 25%

What are your sustainability plans this year?

• better hydro consumption

• recycling & composting

• renewable power

• grape marc recycling system

• sustainable vineyard farming

• winery operational practices

• high quality grapes

• composting facility

• new well

• salmon safe program

• water efficiency

• environmental farm plan

• dry vineyards

• certified organic

• integrated pest management

• bio dynamic

What are your hopes, dreams or greatest accomplishment for your business?

Expand in the next two years to double our 7 acre vineyard.

We achieved all our goals we had, We are now the 2nd consecutive year rated #1 Globally and 8th consecutive year rated #1 in Canada for wine quality. We now just try to maintain this status.

None, we have been in the business too long to have any dreams left…

30 Year End 2016

Win winery of the year.

Sales Where do you sell your wine?

IN FUTURE 17%

92% IN YOUR TASTING ROOM

NO 31%

88% RESTAURANTS

YES 52%

Would you like to sell wine in liquor stores?

88% PRIVATE BEER AND WINE STORES

Do you export wine, and if so, where?

83% ONLINE SALES Asia 67% 63% WINE CLUB

Europe 33%

42 % F ARMER’S MARKETS

USA 73%

42 % G OVERNMENT LIQUOR STORE

20%

I want to learn more.

What are your hopes & dreams for the industry?

Recognition

Growth

• Love to see the BC wine industry get the attention it deserves • Have more people recognize our growing region and understand that wine can be made in different regions in Canada • To be recognized in the world as a high quality wine region

• Continued growth and quality improvement • Expand in sales and restaurant market • Wines are always improving across the whole industry • Develop this region as North Americas leading culinary destination

Success & Sales

Quality

• Continue to make world class wines • Keep the BC wine industry successful • Consumer to purchase more VQA wines. The overall market share is still low in B.C. and miniscule in the rest of Canada • I hope for many people to enjoy BC Wines daily • Financial success • Grape prices will remain the same or increase by the ton!

• Improve Sales

• Quality grapes = quality wine • Higher standards through leadership • Produce world class wines that are recognized for quality and value in a broad market • Greater quality for the region, focus on consistent high quality wines that are regionally specific

Year End 2016 31

The 2016 Fruit Leadership Race

By Ronda Payne Each year Orchard and Vine connects with B.C. fruit and berry growers and their associations to determine how the season went. It’s an important review in that it delivers information not only about seasonal activities but also struggles and triumphs.

The round-up is given a theme to make fruit performance relative and to also bring a healthy dose of humour to the topic. With the US election antics not long behind us, it seemed a good time to compare the season’s fruit performance with historical leaders. Like the challenges for our neighbours south of the border, this leadership trail was bumpy at times, although we may have put a dab or two of whitewash on some of the failings of the leaders we chose.

Cranberries We start our seasonal recap with the latest berry harvest – cranberries. Brian Mauza, senior Agricultural Scientist of Ocean Spray of Canada notes that although the weather wasn’t quite as strong for cranberries this year as it was last year, it was still good from a growing

standpoint given pollination and growing conditions.

success by staying in tune with the greatest and best varieties available.

“We’re expecting the yield to be higher than last year,” he notes. “It’s another good crop for B.C.”

He adds that next year looks promising with bud set appearing quite strong already.

Growers for Ocean Spray were encouraged to focus on fruit quality for the 2016 season and Mauza says that focus definitely paid off.

So, which historical leader did the cranberry season mimic? William Lyon Mackenzie King, Canadian prime minister in the 1920s, 30s and 40s because of his work towards constant improvement with labour organizations in the 40s and his ability to keep Canada together while enacting gradual change.

“It’s expensive, but growers worked very hard on fruit quality this year, our quality is up.” He adds that there is an incentive for that laser focus because, “The growers get paid for that.”

The cranberry girdler is the worst pest for the crop. This webworm is quite happy to munch on the roots of turf grasses, but will move to the runners of cranberry plants and kill them.

“That’s our single worst pest and when it’s hot it is very prevalent,” Mauza says of the girdler. “The only control is biological or chemical, so we use a lot of IPM (nematodes).”

Yield may be up, but it will be fairly close, with new varieties coming into full production helping the numbers slightly.

“Most growers are actively replacing some of the older, less productive beds with newer very productive varieties,” notes Mauza. “We see a number of acres replanted every year. A few beds that were planted a few years ago are coming into production now and are really, really good.”

Many of the replants are new varieties from the breeding program that are producing earlier crops. This constant replacement is, as Mauza says, the key for

It was a phenomenal amount of fruit on the June bearing. We just kept picking and picking and picking.

- Dave Khakh 32 Year End 2016

Strawberries Strawberries, had perhaps the best season of all fruit. Dave Khakh, grower with KBF Farms and director with the BC Strawberry Growers Association notes that the season was good – one that he’s definitely happy with.

“They were just loaded,” Khakh says of the plants. “It was a phenomenal amount of fruit on the June bearing. We just kept picking and picking and picking.”

He adds that the fruit was very ripe, juicy and well ripened throughout the berry.

The size was also a strong point with full, large berries in both the ever bearing and June bearing varieties.

With the gradual decline in acreage of strawberries over the years and the closure of local processors, growers focus primarily on fresh, farm-gate sales, according to Khakh. There were no significant changes in the amount of acreage planted.

The weather was a good participant in the outcome.

“It was pretty good,” he says. “It was early. It was pretty warm in early April and May, unseasonably warm.”

Despite the early warmth, pest issues weren’t terribly significant with some spotted wing drosophila (SWD) late in the season.

“We never used to have these diseases and pest issues,” Khakh says. “I think we could use a little colder winter. Twenty to thirty years ago there used to be this intense cold and wind, we don’t get that anymore.”

Another reflection from the past Khakh offers is that replanting wasn’t necessary for five or six years. Now two or three years is the norm for strawberry plants.

Growers are replanting a few acres each year and are rotating with other crops.

With a season so good, Asoka the Great who ruled the Indian empire of Maurya from 269 BC, is the choice for the leader most like the strawberry season. While he caused wars, he is described as being kind and gentle. In fact, after the Kalinga War he was so disturbed by the suffering of people that he denounced his throne and privileged life to adopt Buddhism.

Cherries The cherry race was a hard one to win with weather as the enemy. Like Napoleon Bonaparte in his 1812 invasion of Russia across the Niemen River, the weather out-matched the man who was otherwise a brilliant military leader. The freezing cold wiped out the majority of his troops.

President of the BC Cherry Association, Sukhpaul Bal of Kelowna’s Hillcrest Farms says it was a bait-and-switch type of season.

“Everything was looking nice,” he says.

“The cherries were rising up to be some of the biggest cherries we’d ever seen.

It wasn’t a devastating year by any means …but it was looking like one of our best years and you’re throwing half or more of the cherries in the garbage.

- Sukpaul Bal Then we got hit with lots of rain in July.

I heard some stats that in July there was maybe one day in 13 that was over 30 degrees. It was something we’d never seen before. It was waves of rain, you’d get it all dried off and it would come in again in the afternoon or early evening.”

With fruit already at maximum size, splitting was the result. Few blocks of varieties made it out unscathed. Some, like Skeena, had upwards of 70 per cent damage while others were in the range of 35 to 45 per cent or 15 to 20 per cent.

ability to easily remove damaged cherries from the line efficiently.

“It wasn’t a devastating year by any means,” Bal notes. “But it was looking like one of our best years and you’re throwing half or more of the cherries in the garbage.”

Another bright note was that SWD wasn’t as problematic as it has been in previous years although a new pest, the marmorated stink bug is a concern.

Bal retains his perspective. He credits the advancements in technology for the

“If cherries were easy to grow, everybody would be growing them.” He says.

“We’re keeping an eye on it,” Bal notes.

“It doesn’t sound like a very good thing.”

Orchard & Vine Fruit Survey – We asked … You answered What types of fruit do you grow?

Cherries

Raspberries

Apples

Nectarines

Peaches

Apricots Vegetables Grapes (wine) Grapes (table) Plums Niche Berries

Strawberries

NO 40% YES 60%

ather this yea r?

Peaches

we

Blueberries

i

ith the impa ct of e

Strawberries

What type of crop produced the best for you this year?

dw ie sf

th

Apples

you happy o ere rs W a

Cherries

t

Blueberries

Grapes Raspberries

YES 27%

NO 73%

Did you replant this year?

Year End 2016 33

Overall, cherry acreage has increased, partially because of the replant program.

Bal puts the current volume of trees at about 5,000 acres.

“There’s still more room for quite a bit more acreage I think,” he says. “There’s very strong demand. It’s just the challenge of can you get a quality cherry to them.”

Bal attended a trade show in Hong Kong and noted the demand for beautiful B.C. cherries is still growing. Growers will have to continue to stay on top of quality to maximize the Asian market.

Overall, the yield from the 2016 season is expected to be down from the 2015 season, but as Bal puts it, “We’re optimistic in the cherry world. We have to be.”

Raspberries Raspberries had a more positive season than cherries, but didn’t come without battles. An annoying pest – SWD – continues to be the hardship for these growers and this continuing battle was made worse by weather challenges according to Arvin Neger of Mukhtiar Growers and chair of the board with the Raspberry Industry Development Council.

“Last year was definitely a hotter season and a drier season,” Neger says. “It put a lot of pressure on the plants and the plants couldn’t thrive as they might have.

It did rain a lot this year but it didn’t affect the quality as it would have or could have.”

Neger says the season was mostly dry and when the rain did come, it was followed

It’s difficult to pick in the rain…It’s not ideal. So in the breaks between the wind and the rain we had to get out and get the berries picked.

- Arvin Neger by wind which helped to dry the moisture and prevent the anticipated mold.

While the plus side of the wind was helping to clear up the excess moisture, but the downside was that the wind would knock the fruit off the canes before it could be picked.

“It’s difficult to pick in the rain,” says Neger. “It’s not ideal. So in the breaks between the wind and the rain we had to get out and get the berries picked. We would find the berries falling down because of the wind. Then we also had to keep in mind the SWD spray cycle.”

Raspberry growers were stuck in a balancing act where the rain, the harvest and the SWD sprays all had to be orchestrated perfectly in order to get the fruit off the field. Despite this, Neger feels the season was good overall given his conversations with fellow growers.

SWD continues to be the primary pest and one that raspberry growers could use some extra help with.

“We have a good tool belt filled with

products we can use to control other pests,” he notes. “The problem we’re running into with SWD is there’s only a certain number of products we can use to control it.”

Each product also has limitations for use. Rotating the sprays help to prevent SWD from becoming resistant, but Neger thinks it would be ideal to have two or three more products to add to the rotation.

“Almost every grower knows that this is a real problem and it’s not going anywhere and we need to adapt our processes to control it,” he says. “On the west coast we don’t get the extreme cold temperatures to get the larvae to die off.

Orchard & Vine Fruit Survey – We asked … You answered Do you hold events or have other business activities on your property?

Farm gate sales

86%

School visits

29%

Weddings

14%

Tours, petting zoo, etc.

14%

Small festivals, dinners, music, or other events

14%

34 Year End 2016

FAMILY 20%

FOREIGN WORKERS 20%

LOCAL WORKERS 60%

Farm Labour: who did you hire this year?

It’s the ideal climate for the SWD population with the moist springs and hot summers.”

The weather this year was ideal for SWD to repopulate, but growers were vigilant and managed to stay on top of the issues. Despite SWD and the rain, the berry quality was good and yield is expected to be higher than it was in 2015, though how much higher is hard to tell.

“I think growers will see a decrease in price,” Neger says. “But tonnage will be up from last year, so hopefully growers can walk away with that at least.”

Raspberries continue to be dominantly in the processed market, with five per cent or less going to the fresh market.

Neger believes overall acreage of raspberries has gone up, but much of the new planting has been offset by the fields being ripped out and replaced by blueberry plantings. There are approximately 100 levy paying growers in B.C. representing about 2,100 acres and Neger is pleased to see most of these growers investing in replanting.

“Some raspberry farmers are replanting their raspberries,” he notes. “They are trying different varieties that are available.”

Some of those different varieties include Rudi, Squamish and Wakefield (which is a private variety requiring royalties). These new varieties are, in some cases, replacing the predominant Meeker variety.

It seems that Alfred the Great, the king of Wessex (the south of Great Britain) is the best fit for the raspberry season due to his sponsorship of education (including that of women), developing the

Where do you sell your fruit?

71% Packinghouse

streets seen in England today, protecting his people from Vikings and being one of the few leaders to inspire the moniker of Great – all of this despite facing a constant and persistent health issue which many now believe to have been Crohn’s disease. He dealt with his issues, yet carried on bravely.

Blueberries The blueberry season too was filled with weather challenges given the mild winter, warm spring and variable summer conditions according to BC Blueberry Council’s executive director, Debbie Etsell.

“This is difficult for growers to manage,” she says. “They need to be on top of their field practices to manage diseases and pests.”

The warm spring saw an early start to the blueberry season with good pollination and fruit ripening about four weeks ahead of normal. This caused high levels of harvesting early in the season as both early and mid-season varieties were ripe at the same time. This volume of fruit from mid-July to early August was the standard for all Pacific Northwest growers.

Unfortunately, that excitement of crops at the start of the season didn’t translate to mid-season. In terms of leadership it can be compared to the second term curse often plaguing US presidents.

While there was no disease pressure at the beginning of the season that changed as the season progressed. SWD was also ramping up in the later varieties due to the amount of fruit earlier in the season. These issues added to the Continued on page 36

What was your greatest accomplishment this year? " Built new picker camp, due to downsizing was able to pay more attention to details."

"Purchased new farmland for expansion." " Went from liquid fertigation to granular.

Great production and new growth in shoots."

"Surviving the rain. " "Paying down debt."

"Running a good operation." " Making a profit even with all the bad weather for cherries." " Had a great team in the office and in the farm gate operation."

Comments on the future of farming, food safety and production?

• S aanich where I farm is generally progressive in farming practices, but I worry about the proliferation of pesticide intensive GMO crops elsewhere.

• Growers are losing the access to chemicals which control important pests like cherry fruit fly and swd (lost diazinon this year). This can potentially impact our ability to grow a crop that can be exported.

• Happy with direction we're going but don't see young people joining industry at a time when public wanting.

• Consumers interested in local food and show willingness to pay.

• Labour and cost of labour big concern.

• If, when Canadian dollar goes to par we are in trouble.

What are your thoughts on future of farming, food safety and production?

Worry about future generations 46%

43% Farmers' Market

Need improvements 39%

36% Farm Gate Happy 15% 7% Restaurants, Hotels or Home Delivery Service

Year End 2016 35

Continued from page 35

reduced volumes in the later crops and an overall decline in the yield of blueberries.

“For the first time, in a very long time, volumes are down,” Etsell notes. “We don’t know exactly how much yet, but at least 12 million pounds.”

Plantings of blueberries have slowed from the previous “blueberry rush” years.

A positive note internationally was that blueberries made their way to China for the first time ever after last year’s approval.

“B.C., for the first time, sent shipments of controlled atmosphere fresh blueberries to China,” says Etsell. “This is a great accomplishment for our industry.”

The blueberry season wrapped up similarly to Lyndon B. Johnson’s (LBJ) two terms in the White House. The first was highlighted by some wonderful positive activities while the second was mostly coloured negatively by the Vietnam War. Tree Fruits – Apples, Pears, Peaches, Plums and Nectarines Tree fruits fared well in 2016. Although a few orchards experienced some difficulties due to the stress of the heat last year, these were minor and isolated according to Fred Steele, president of the BC Fruit Growers Association.

“We got pretty good size, we got a pretty good crop,” Steele says of apples. “We had longer periods of cooler weather.”

Pears were also considered a good crop as were the soft tree fruits of peaches, plums, nectarines and apricots. In fact, one peach nearly set a record.

“One grower, Robert Hague at Roseridge Orchards, they had one peach that was pretty near to a Guinness record,” notes Steele. “Everybody’s yield was pretty good.”

One grower, Robert Hague at Roseridge Orchards, had a peach that was pretty near to a Guinness record… everybody’s yield was pretty good.

- Fred Steele Acreage of all fruits stayed consistent Steele notes, but he did feel that the apple yield might be up slightly for the year as well as pears. Apple prices have held solidly. Due to the soft fruits farm-gate method of sale, it’s hard to say if pricing and yield held to the same levels, but he felt that they had.

Where issues cropped up for tree fruit farmers was in pests.

“We’re taking a different approach to pests,” Steele says. “We’re actually looking at SIR [Sterile Insect Release program] and may be able to work with some projects, even at a contract basis, at this point to address some of the pests that are now invasive.”

This look to new methods of dealing with pests comes from the constant pressure of SWD and the fears of new pests.

Steele notes that new pests used to come on the scene every five to ten years, but growers are now seeing them every three to five. The current challenge growers are hoping to stave off is the apple maggot as well as the marmorated stink bug cherry growers are concerned about.

“We’re keeping on the lookout and monitoring for these at all times,” Steele says. “We’re in an area in North America that doesn’t have it. Everyone else has the problem.”

I’m seeing very beautiful aromatic profiles on the fruit and very good tannins in the red… it’s one of the best vintages.”

- Val Tait

Steele fears if pest pressures and SWD populations continue to rise it could impact the enviable IPM program of tree fruit growers.

Overall, Steele felt that yields of tree fruits were up, size of fruit was up and quality was good.

“Quality and taste were really good this year,” he says. “I’m really happy about it this year.”

Steele also adds that the replant program received an extra $1 million in funding to provide the program for the next few years, crop insurance will now include windstorms in the same manner as hail storms and he is working on an infrastructure program.

“This industry is changing so fast,” he says. “We have to run at top speed just to keep up with it.”

The tree fruit season could be compared to the reign of Louis the V of France who was nicknamed the Lazy King – certainly the tree harvest wasn’t lazy, but just as there was no change from the previous ruler’s (Louis’s father) tenure to Louis’s, there were few changes from the tree fruit growers’ previous season to this.

What was negative for Louis, was a positive for growers.

Overall, growers around the province

36 Year End 2016

came out of the 2016 season positively.

There were some hiccups given the ever present challenge of weather and the increasing pressure of pests, but hopefully complaints will remain down and optimism up as everyone looks back on the year. Clearly, when it comes to leadership races, fruit and berry growers are at the forefront.

Grapes This year, grapes had perhaps one of the best seasons of recent recollection. While the unusual spring heat created anticipation for an early harvest, the mid-summer cooling off led to what may be some of the best wine grapes and a successful season for table grapes as well.

itself,” Tait says. “Just get out of the way and let the fruit fully express itself.”

There were few pests of note this year, but there was one challenge, higher labour costs to train the vines and get excessive growth under control. It’s the downside of an increased yield. Tait estimates labour to have been 30 or 40 per cent higher for some vineyards.

With all that good news, one might think acreage in wine and table grapes is going up in leaps and bounds, but Tait says that trend has slowed from previous years.

So, on the theme of leadership, who did the grape season best represent? Ronald Reagan, who, in 1987 called to copmmunist leaders in a speech that concluded with “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” While Reagan was no more perfect than any of the leaders noted in this review, he did identify the right time to help make things better just like grape growers will be making amazing wine and continuing to attract buyers of local table grapes. ■

Val Tait, general manager and winemaker at Bench 1775 is also the vice president with the British Columbia Grape Growers’ Association. She notes the late cooling off in the summer is great for wine grapes.

“I’ve been involved in the industry for 27 years and every year has been completely different,” she notes. “We’ve always been able to ripen fruit. Some years we just make it, others we have room to spare. It’s very rare to get cool climate conditions, which is what this is. We’re very lucky.”

Tait notes that while late August and early September are the indicators of wine grape harvest yields, table grapes are harvested earlier.

“There has been and increased demand for local grown [table] grapes,” she says.

“It’s been good for the industry.”

The majority of table grape growers also grow other types of fruit. Those who grow wine grapes do so for the obvious reason of creating wine. The harvest of wine grapes is about two weeks later than the past two years, and is perhaps closer to the overall decade norms.

“I’m seeing very beautiful aromatic profiles on the fruit and very good tannins in the red,” she notes. “It’s the potential for the best balanced chemistry we have in the fruits. I’m thinking it’s one of the best vintages.”

BEIJING

TIANJIN

SHANGHAI

CHICAGO

EDMONTON

THANK YOU FOR A GREAT CHERRY SEASON! For future China shipments, visit expaircargo.com

The lower alcohol potential and balance of acids and sugars are expected to make the flavour richer and more balanced in the wine grapes.

“Fruit like that pretty much makes [wine]

Year End 2016 37

 SEEDS OF GROWTH | FRED STEELE

BC Needs a Bare Land Planting Program

B

are ground planting for the tree fruit industry would be an additional tool for rejuvenating our industry. To its credit the Provincial Government has supported replant - where trees are removed and new varieties planted. We have seen the benefit of the replant program in renewing our orchards. However, for an orchard removed more than five years ago, a new planting is not eligible for the replant program.

Over the years, the elusive goal of replanting blocks pulled out years ago or land that has never been planted with tree fruits has been pursued provincially and feder-

ally. Recently, the BCFGA has asked Federal Government politicians to consider a rejuvenation program.

Until this year we never got past NO. One of the suggestions was to ensure that there is a formal plan with national buy-in from all of the provincial apple associations (i.e.

BCFGA, Ontario Apple Growers, Les Producteurs de Pommes du Quebec, Nova Scotia Fruit Growers’ Association, and Apple Growers of New Brunswick).

Through the Canadian Horticulture Council’s Apple Working Group, the provinces came together, with BC and Ontario leading the writing of a formal plan that is reviewed and approved by all provincial apple associations.

The long-standing BC dream became a national dream where participation would involve all the tree fruit producing provinces. The road to the National Tree Fruit Rejuvenation Program began in January, in Ottawa and to date we have laid out a

reason for optimism. A wellstructured plan is the result.

Now the real work comes, with the provincial apple associations - and individual growers - advocating for a rejuvenation program that finances planting beyond that which is eligible for our provincial replant program.

A brief history shows over the past half century we have been facing stiff competition chiefly from Washington State. Though we have had two successful anti-dumping decisions, there has been a decline in domestic apple production. In 1971, Canada had nearly 135,000 acres under production. After building the dams on the Columbia River to store water for the Americans, combined with a number of other factors we have shrunk to about 67,000 acres nationally.

Canadian growers have taken a number of steps to compete against the rapid growth in Washington State and the eastern American markets.

Steps have included: • Building more efficient irrigation methods • Replacing traditional varieties with new varieties • Introducing high density growing to increase yields • The introduction of management tools, wind machines to mitigate frost damage • Participation in food safety programs to ensure confidence in our products • Implementing new cold storage technology • Implementing integrated pest management programs The BCFGA took a very proactive role two decades ago cooperating with the Federal Government to develop new tree fruit varieties; cherries and apples.

This clearly demonstrates growers are willing to invest in their industry and seek cooperation. Partnering with the Federal Government.

Several industry organizations and apple associations

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are developing a new National Apple Breeding Framework.

These positive steps have established a new level of national cooperation between apple associations, and provide the government with confidence that there is, one national plan.

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Locally, growers have a new optimism and new can-do attitude and are ready to put even more investment money into their farms. The key to being able to compete now lies in the ability to have enough products to meet demand. We also need to develop twenty-first century infrastructure to handle the increased volumes being produced. The solution is to grow the industry.

Some have said, why treat the tree fruit industry differently?

A fair question with a good answer, with globalization we have seen companies, and industries spring up and others disappear. In Canada we took positive action and retooled the auto industry we re-organized the fishery, the lumber industry, even the grains and oilseed sectors. Tree fruit production is a national enterprise neglected for decades and its time has come to rebuild. We have developed national strategies, and now need the program to implement.

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So what would the National Tree Fruit Rejuvenation Program look like and consist of?

The National Tree Fruit Rejuvenation Program would provide interest relief to cover the interest growers pay on funds they access for replant, and for the cost of infrastructure for storage to handle increased volume.

Interest relief would cover the five-year period from when the trees are planted until the first commercial crop is realized.

The time period for planting would run from 2017 to 2022. The interest relief would run for five years after planting.

Growing quality fruit becomes its own value added component. This quality advantage combined with newer varieties would see profitable returns for farmers.

This goes with something I have said for years, farmers don’t need to be sustained by government; they need to find the level of profitability in the marketplace.

To maximize the potential of the new

Year End 2016 39

value-added product we need to ensure the building blocks of infrastructure are in place to support the increased volumes.

Packing and storage facilities, along with innovation that uses less water and is environmentally friendly. Under the national proposal, improvement to packing and storage facilities would also be eligible for the rejuvenation program.

The national and regional benefits of the tree fruit rejuvenation program are: Job Creation: • An increase in skilled jobs to support technological advancements in the area of production and storage.

• An increase in supplier businesses.

• An increase in farm work.

Environment and climate change benefits: • Lower energy consumption and energy efficiency in packing and storage facilities.

• Efficient water use in packing plants.

• Improved efficiency of new irrigation technology in orchards.

Local impacts: • New product will displace imports.

• Increased exports.

• New domestic sales alone are estimated to be $86 million annually.

This deal would see an industry investment of $880 million dollars and a government investment to $243 million over the life of the program across the country British Columbia would receive an estimated 39.2 percent of the allocated funds.

This is in my humble opinion (or as the more technologically oriented say, IMHO) the final leg in a race for the tree fruit industry to go from sustainability to profitability. With grower support we will rejuvenate the industry, reversing the decline that followed the Columbia River Treaty. ■ Fred Steele, President, BC Fruit Growers’ Association

Be Our Next Business Feature of the Day Ask us How! info@orchardandvine.net 40 Year End 2016

î Ž LEGAL LIBATIONS | DENESE ESPEUT-POST

To Will or Not to Will; That is the Question pable (perhaps as a result of a serious accident) and do not regain their mental capacity, they will die without a Will because one must have mental capacity to make a Will.

family if I die without a Will?"

T

here are many aspects of operating a vineyard or orchard that are important from a legal perspective. We have chatted about everything from written contracts and land leases to trademarks to animal protection. But there is one difficult question that needs to be tackled by all people, whether a business owner or not, "what happens to my business, my possessions and my

Okay, I can already feel some eyes rolling. I know it's not a question that most people want to ask. Many people do not want to discuss what may happen in the event they should pass away and feel like thinking about death creates unnecessary worries; almost like they are tempting fate if they plan for their passing.

Many other people simply put off making a Will thinking that at some point in the future they will "get around to it." Of course, this is not great planning should a person die unexpectedly or as a result of a sudden illness. One factor that procrastinators fail to consider is that, in the event they become mentally inca-

You may have heard the word "intestacy" or heard that Mr. X died "intestate". This is the legal way of saying that the person died without a Will and the person's estate (which generally consists of the assets the person owned at the time of their death) will be divided and distributed according to the formula set out in BC Law. In a nutshell, if you would like to decide how your estate will be handled and distributed upon your death, you need to have a Will. Not only will your Will

allow you to choose how your specific assets are disposed of, you can decide the beneficiaries of your estate and the executor of your estate which is a very important decision and key to preserving family harmony and the proper administration of your estate.

It is clear that people have some misconceptions about intestacy. Many people assume that their spouse will inherit everything if they die without a Will. In British Columbia, if you die intestate with a spouse and children, your spouse will receive a preferred share up to a certain value with the remainder to be divided between your spouse and your children. If you intend for your spouse to

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inherit all of your estate upon your death, do not rely upon intestacy.

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Another common misconception is that a person's assets will pass to their spouse without a Will because the couple owns their assets (i.e. their home, bank accounts, and unregistered investments) jointly with the right of survivorship. Ownership of all assets in joint tenancy without a Will will necessarily result in intestacy on the death of the second spouse. Upon the death of the second spouse, the couple's assets will be distributed to persons related to the second spouse without provision to persons related to the first spouse. This is often an unintended consequence of intestacy. If you intend for your relatives to inherit a portion of your estate upon your death or, if you die before your spouse, upon your spouse’s death, do not rely upon intestacy.

In the unfortunate situation where the couple dies together, each person will be presumed to have survived the other and the joint tenancy will be severed. In this case, without a Will, the jointly owned assets will pass to certain persons determined by the government in accordance with the laws of intestacy.

Taking the time to consider your estate plan has many benefits including the ability to take advantage of strategies which can help you to reduce probate fees and income taxes. For example, you can consider whether you can maximize the spousal rollover for capital property or maximize the use of the capital gains exemption. You can consider joint tenancy ownership or the use of an alter ego or joint spousal trust. The probate fees in British Columbia are amongst the highest in Canada, so considering strategies to reduce probate fees may be worthwhile for you and your estate.

The best time to make a Will and think about your estate planning is when you don't need it. Don't postpone until you are about to go on a long vacation, undergo a medical procedure or some other significant family events. This is an important process; don't rush and risk leaving out critical information or failing to think through the consequences of the instructions you provide to your lawyer or notary. Even though death is not avoidable, the adverse consequences of intestacy are avoidable. ■ Denese Espeut-Post is an Okanagan-based lawyer and owns Avery Law Office. Her primary areas of practice include wine and business law. www.averylawoffice.ca

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 GREEN STEP | LINDSAY EASON

Certifications for Small-Scale Agribusiness Could A Certification Program Be Right For You?

W

hether you grow grapes or apples, produce wine or beer, preserve jam or jellies or offering farm tours and experiences, you are probably labeled as small-scale agribusiness. In BC, the majority of agricultural producers, suppliers and tourism operators fit into this category. And like most small businesses, you are busy running your company so you can produce the best product and provide the best experience to your customers.

So how can certification fit into your business? Certifications provide a standard framework in which your product, services or operations are assessed, (usually audited by a third-party).

You may think your business does not “fit in the box” of certification… but before you

1. D o you want to ensure you are meeting an industry standard?

2. A re you looking for guidance to improve the sustainability performance of your business?

3. A re you looking for a marketing tool to attract new customers?

4. D o you want physical proof (in the way of an eco-logo) to show your customers or stakeholders you are doing what you say you’re doing?

5. D o you want to be recognized on a provincial, national or international level? are selling within BC without actually being certified.

However, this is changing; the BC Ministry of Agriculture is standardizing the term and ensuring that everyone using “organic” has been certified and is meeting the same industry standards. But figuring out which certification to get can become a little confusing too. There are different certifications related to the size of your operation and the geographical region in which you sell your products. But in any case, setting an industry norm to reduce pesticides, fertilizers and genetically modified organisms is a great idea, and more consumers are buying organic foods as a healthier

disregard it, consider these 5 things to decide whether a certification program could be right for you.

If you answered yes to any of these questions, read on to see if there is a certification program out there that could be right for your business.

Organic Certification The term “organic” means all produce and livestock raised on your farm was never genetically modified or treated with chemical pesticides or fertilizers from seed to final product. But there is a lot of confusion over using the term “organic”. Currently you can use “organic” to describe your products if you

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option to conventionally grown products. The best place to start exploring this option is though the Certified Organic Association of BC www.certifiedorganic.bc.ca.

Environmental Farm Plan This program helps you properly assess all potential environmental risks of your farm and design a mitigation program specific to your property. Having such a plan can improve environmental performance, offer marketing opportunities as an environmental steward and help improve industry standards for environmental management. Learn more through AgriService BC http://www2. gov.bc.ca/gov/content/industry/agriculture-seafood/programs/growing-forward-2/environmental-farm-plan. And while you’re on their website, check out their rebates and other programs that could be relevant to your business.

BC Wine Institute – Sustainable Wine Growing British Columbia This program (not a certification), created by many different experts in the wine in-

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dustry, offers free tools and resources to help wineries get on the right sustainability track. Their online tools and resources help BC winery and vineyard operators practice environmental stewardship, improve job satisfaction and build a “meaningful legacy to future generations while being economically viable today”. The program can help boost efficiencies, reduce pollution, understand the latest technologies and connect with other like-minded businesses. Seven BC wineries have completed the self-assessments, including Blasted Church, Mission Hill, NK’Mip Cellars, St. Hubertus, Tinhorn Creek, Tantalus Vineyards and Quail’s Gate Estate Winery. To learn more about this program, visit sustainablewinegrowingbc.ca.

Green Tourism Certification This international certification program allowing agri-tourism businesses to be compared with hotel, resorts and other attractions. With over 2,300 businesses certified around the world, Green Tourism is the largest and most credible sustainability certification program for tourism businesses. You will receive a third-party verified assessment every two years, which grades your business on many different areas, from energy, waste and water to purchasing, nature/culture, transportation, management and more. Once assessed, the business shows supporting evidence and may receive Bronze, Silver or Gold certification.

This overall holistic approach to business management will help attract new customers, offer multiple marketing opportunities and provide a roadmap to improving the efficiency and sustainability of your businesses operations. There are 100 certified businesses in Canada. To find out if Green Tourism Certification is right for you, visit www.greentourismcanada.ca.

Salmon Safe There are hundreds (if not thousands) of salmon-bearing streams, creeks and rivers that pass through agricultural land in this province. Salmon stocks are under severe stress for many different reasons, and this certification serves to eliminate agricultural practices as one of those reasons. The Pacific Salmon Foundation and Fraser Basin Council brought this successful Oregon/Washington program to BC, which has over 700 US certified farms and over 40 BC certified farms in the program.

Salmon Safe defines and promotes sustainable agricultural land management practices to protect and enhance water quality and aquatic ecosystems. If you are a farm or winery and want to optimize your water use without compromising salmon habitat, conserve soil and practice sustainable pest management practices, this could be the right certification for you.

Klippers Organics in the Similkameen was the first farm in BC to join the program. To learn more about becoming Salmon Safe Certified, visit http://www.salmonsafe.org/bc.

Continual improvement in business practices and management is the norm for most small agricultural businesses in BC. Making sustainability improvements not only contributes to efficiencies and cost savings, it can also help improve your bottom line and improve the health of the environment in which you operate. Although most of these programs have a cost associated with them, the cost far outweighs the benefits you will receive; just make sure you weigh all the pros and cons of each program to find the best one that suits your business. ■ Lindsay Eason is the cofounder of GreenStep Solutions and manager of Green Tourism Canada. www.greenstep.ca

 THE WORD ON WINE | LAURA KITTMER

BCWI Launches Wine & Culinary Tourism Campaign

W

ine Country: Your Urban Escape is a campaign launched this fall to inspire British Columbia, Alberta and Washington travelers to visit BC’s wine regions this harvest season.

“We are thrilled to be partnering with Destination British Columbia’s Co-op Marketing Partnerships Program on this extensive plan,” explains Maggie Anderson, BCWI marketing director. “Through this campaign, we are reaching out to neighbouring travelers and inspiring them to take a trip to BC’s wine regions and enjoy the many wine and culinary experiences available during an exciting time of year.”

The campaign is part of the

the world to enjoy our exceptional wine touring experiences,” says Anderson.

BCWI’s Wine and Culinary Tourism strategy that was developed to support all of the wine producing regions in the province and the local culinary offerings in these areas. The goal of the campaign is to increase awareness, visitation and sales to all BC wineries and associated culinary businesses as well as increase overnight stays in BC wine primary regions, by inviting travelers to find a new wine experience somewhere in BC.

Wineries throughout BC have reported a busier than ever summer, and wine shops were still buzzing headed into fall.

With tourism numbers up, and more awareness being driven towards BC’s unique wine touring regions, wineries are staying open throughout the cooler seasons, offering everything from tastings, to private wine tours and food pairing experiences.

BC VQA Wine sales (litres) are at an all-time high, up 17 per cent from 2015 across all channels with BC VQA Wine sales (litres) direct from cellar doors up 25.1 per cent from 2015. Visitors to BC in the first seven months of 2016 were also higher than ever before: up 12.5 per cent from last year, according to Statistics Canada.

“When life is busy and the next holiday seems months away, harvest is when the vineyards come alive, chefs experiment with local seasonal ingredients, and hotel rates start to reflect the cooler temperatures. It’s all about that ideal getaway that BC wine country has to offer,” notes Anderson. “This campaign encourages everyday commuters to take a break from their day-to-day routines and enjoy some 100 per cent British Columbia wine right where it’s made.”

“BC continues to gain global recognition for producing premium, internationallyacclaimed award-winning wines. Our wine region is attracting tourists from all over

Wines of British Columbia will also be launching a new wine and culinary video in the coming months. For more information about the BCWI Wine and Culinary Tourism program, visit www.WineBC. com. ■ Laura Kittmer is the Media Relations Manager at the British Columbia Wine Institute. www.winebc.org @WineBCdotcom The British Columbia Wine Institute is dedicated to establishing the Wines of British Columbia as the preferred premium wine brand in BC; create a business climate that encourages investment in the quality of BC wines; provide leadership on key industry issues; and assist members in reaching their full potential. We strive to enhance the environment for the responsible consumption and enjoyment of wine at our member wineries and various retail partners across the province.

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Catch up on your Reading!

If you missed and article you can read it online Pre-Spring Issue • Choosing the Best Tractor • Precision Viticulture can Increase Quality and Productivity Spring Issue • Learn How Today’s Farmers are Today’s Entrepreneurs • Buyer’s Guide – 100’s of Top Quality Suppliers & Service Providers

Summer Issue • Classical Music Connect the Vineyard and Winemaking • Confusing Liquor Laws Explained • Cider Making in the Fraser Valley • Strawberry Root Challenges Innovation • Innovative Concepts and Revolutionary Ideas • A Water Positive Winery is Possible • Discover the Latest Trends and Products

Fall • How One Grower Diversified and Expanded • What You Need to Know About Shipping • Growing Better Trees • Returning a Vineyard to its Natural State.

Year End • Exclusive Interview with BC’s Agricultural Minister • Readers talked to O&V for our Year End Review on Fruit & Wine • Discover more about Sustainability, Farm Safety, Money and Legal Advice

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