Minister Evans Returns With Nothing
December 19, 1996
by Gwendolyn Richards
Daily News Staff
DAWSON CREEK — Just over a month since his first visit to Dawson Creek, Minister of Agriculture Corky Evans returned to tell farmers and community members there would be no immediate financial assistance from the provincial government.
At a meeting with the Peace River Regional District, Evans announced to board members that there would be no immediate compensation for farmers trying to deal with financial difficulties.
"There will be no loans by the province," he announced.
Instead, Evans said, "the provincial government will take another $1.2 million to be put towards agricultural development in the Peace."
The catch is that a business plan put together by Peace community members and staff from the ministry must be completed before the money will be given by the government.
The purpose of the fund is to prevent such a crisis from happening down the road and to fund all of agriculture in the Peace. Similar programs have been set up for specific crops around the province, such as blueberries, but this fund is unique because it is for all agriculture in the region.
Evans said the choice on whether to use the money for long-term or short-term gains is up to the business plan committee, however, other than the $1.2 million, there will be no money from the government.
"Maybe the (business plan) council can provide some short-term assistance," he said.
In addition, Evans has asked the federal government to match the provincial government’s money.
But, while this fund may be good news down the road, Evans said it still doesn’t help farmers who need cash now.
"We are not addressing the immediate cash flow need," said Evans.
And MLA Jack Weisgerber agrees. "The response from the government is woefully inadequate," he said. "The plan has long term benefits, but it doesn’t help the immediate cash flow crisis."
Weisgerber said he feels loans are in the better interest for local farmers and can’t understand why the government could loan $50 million to Evans Forest Products Ltd. in Golden, but won’t provide something similar to Peace region farmers.
"I think if [the government] can provide up to $50 million for one part of the province, then I can’t accept the argument it can’t be done here," he said.
New Crop Program Won't Necessarily Help, Says Minister Evans
December 11, 1996
by Gwendolyn Richards
Daily News Staff
The unveiling of the new crop insurance program for B.C. doesn't necessarily mean there will be no financial compensation for the disaster Peace region farmers have faced, Minister of Agriculture Corky Evans said.
According to Evans, the new program is only one step of many that the ministry is taking to alleviate financial difficulties for farmers both now and in the future.
"First plan was to restructure crop insurance so it would be more attractive to farmers in the future," he told the Daily News. "The fact that crop insurance was structurally not useful to the farming community is what led to this problem in the first place."
Evans explained that only 17 percent of Peace farmers had crop insurance on their fields to provide against such a disaster because of its archaic system and high rates. Making crop insurance a more affordable and viable option for farmers can prevent this kind of large-scale financial disaster in the future, he said.
It was in response to farmers demands that these changes were made, Evans commented. "The nature of the changes (to the crop insurance program) respond directly to the criticisms I heard in the Peace region."
Evans explained the new program is not only more affordable -- $100 annual premium plus $75 for each crop to be insured -- but allows farmers to purchase additional coverage for specific disasters that occur in particular regions. In addition, farmers can also choose to only ensure one type of crop instead of all of theirs.
"This way a risk management plan can be designed for specific crops," he said. "It's a self-designed plan."
Evans explained that a change to crop insurance was a priority because it was a major part of his discussions with local farmers during his visit. However, Evans agrees that a restructured crop insurance program is only one step on the road to financial recovery for local producers.
"Crop insurance payments are just one more piece of the puzzle," he said. "I hope I'm not through yet."
While ad hoc compensation is highly unlikely, Evans continues to battle for some financial assistance for Peace growers.
"The extent of the weather disaster in the Peace is such that we must respond to give hope to farmers in the Peace," he said.
But, while Evans is fighting to help Peace farmers, companies like Canadian Airlines and Evans Forest Products are gaining media coverage for their own efforts towards getting financial assistance from the government.
According to Evans, however, these two companies are "in discussion with the government", which he said, doesn't necessarily mean they are definitely getting financial assistance.
As far as the media coverage of these two companies situations, Evans said: "The only difference between Evans Forest Products and Canadian Airlines and Peace farmers is that they get on TV. They're huge enough to attract the urban effete yuppies who decide what's interesting in Kitsalano."
Meanwhile, with farmers able to apply for interest-free loans under the Prairie Grain Advance Payment Act, and a continuing fight to make a structural response to farmers' plights, Evans feels that the cash flow situation in the Peace will improve soon.
Farmer's Receive Free Internet Access Internet
Nov. 19, 1996
by Gwendolyn Richards
Daily News Staff
Area farmers who are Peace Region Internet Society members can look forward to a half-year free Internet access from PRIS as a token of appreciation during the farming crisis.
At a recent board of directors meeting, it was decided that PRIS needed to acknowledge the crisis farmers would be facing for the upcoming year. Unanimously, the board decided to allow farmers with private memberships six months free internet access.
Although the board recognizes that this gesture is more symbolic than anything else, PRIS is hoping this offer will spark other community groups or services to do likewise.
"We challenge the community to do something similar," said board chair, John D’Amato.
The savings for farmers participating amounts to about $180, which may not seem like much, "but, that’s $30 a month that they don’t have to spend," said D’Amato.
The free six months is limited to those farmers who already have private memberships with the Internet provider and have at least 320 acres of annual crops, proven by a valid Canada Wheat Board Permit book.
Those farmers wishing to take advantage of PRIS’ offer need to attach a copy of the relevant CWB permit book page to their monthly bill.
Financial farm help not ruled out, says Evans
by Gwendolyn Richards
Daily News Staff
DAWSON CREEK — The unveiling of the new crop insurance program for B.C. doesn’t necessarily mean there will be no financial compensation for the disaster Peace region farmers are facing, Minister of Agriculture Corky Evans said.
According to Evans, the new program is only one step of many that the ministry is taking to alleviate financial difficulties for farmers both now and in the future.
"First plan was to restructure crop insurance so it would be more attractive to farmers in the future," he told the Daily News. "The fact that crop insurance was structurally not useful to the farming community is what led to this problem in the first place."
Evans explained that only 17 percent of Peace farmers had crop insurance on their fields to provide against such a disaster because of its archaic system and high rates. Making crop insurance a more affordable and viable option for farmers can prevent this kind of large-scale financial disaster in the future, he said.
It was in response to farmers demands that these changes were made, Evans commented. "The nature of the changes (to the crop insurance program) respond directly to the criticisms I heard in the Peace region."
Evans explained the new program is not only more affordable — $100 annual premium plus $75 for each crop to be insured — but allows farmers to purchase additional coverage for specific disasters that occur in particular regions. In addition, farmers can also choose to ensure only one type of crop instead of all of them.
"This way a risk management plan can be designed for specific crops," he said. "It’s a self-designed plan."
Evans explained that a change to crop insurance was a priority because it was a major part of his discussions with local farmers during his visit. However, Evans agrees that a restructured crop insurance program is only one step on the road to financial recovery for local producers.
"Crop insurance payments are just one more piece of the puzzle," he said. "I hope I’m not through yet."
While ad hoc compensation is highly unlikely, Evans continues to battle for some financial assistance for Peace growers.
"The extent of the weather disaster in the Peace is such that we must respond to give hope to farmers in the Peace," he said.
But, while Evans is fighting to help Peace farmers, companies like Canadian Airlines and Evans Forest Products are gaining media coverage for their own efforts towards getting financial assistance from the government.According to Evans, however, these two companies are "in discussion with the government", which he said, doesn’t necessarily mean they are definitely getting financial assistance.
As far as the media coverage of these two companies situations, Evans said: "The only difference between Evans Forest Products and Canadian Airlines and Peace farmers is that they get on TV. They’re huge enough to attract the urban effete yuppies who decide what’s interesting in Kitsilano."
Meanwhile, with farmers able to apply for interest-free loans under the Prairie Grain Advance Payment Act, and a continuing fight to make a structural response to farmers’ plights, Evans feels that the cash flow situation in the Peace will improve soon.
December 9, 1997
by Gwendolyn Richards
Daily News Staff
The Committee of Concerned Agriculture Producers of the B.C. Peace voiced their concerns to the B.C. Minister of Agriculture, Corky Evans, at the National Farmers Union convention held Friday in Saskatoon.
In light of the poor harvest and resulting economic disaster, farmers from the Peace are asking for loans from the ministry.
"There are a lot of bills to be paid this fall," said committee member, Dennis Meier, "and these loans would be used to pay these bills off."
Meier explained that many of the bills farmers are facing are gathering high interest, putting farmers further in debt, and banks are starting to recall loans.
According to the letter read out to Evans, grain growers are asking for loans of $65 per seeded permit book acre and livestock producers are asking $25 per acre of forage grown.
The committee also feels it's important for the goverment to recognize all farmers, not just grain producers, are affected by this year's poor harvest.
"Every agricultural sector in the Peace has been affected by the weather," he said, explaining that livestock farmers' forage doesn't have enough nourishment for animals, so many are being forced to buy it from elsewhere.
The committee understands that no more "freebies" will be given out by the government, but members hope that a plan for long-term loans will be more suitable for both the government and producers.
"We're looking for something long-term, so we don't have to run to the government every time there's some sort of natural disaster," said Meier.
New Crop Insurance Program Announced
Dec. 3, 1996
By Gwendolyn Richards
Daily News Staff
A new crop insurance program for B.C. farmers announced today by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food hopes to put an end to ad hoc compensation payments for natural disasters.
According to Minister Corky Evans, the plan will provide the flexibility farmers have been asking for, which was unavailable under the old program. In addition, this program is supposed to put an end to government compensation to farmers who didn’t buy crop insurance.
"Ad hoc compensation has cost more than $53 million since 1986 and taxpayers can no longer afford this," said Evans in a press release. This figure does not include the additional requests for $24 million which were turned down.
‘Basic+Plus’ insurance works on two levels. The first level has farmers paying a flat annual premium of $100 plus $75 for each crop, no matter what size, to be insured. Basic covers infrequent, high-disaster situations with coverage being primarily funded by the provincial government.
In addition to basic, farmers can also purchase the second level of insurance, which provides further protection to meet individual needs.
"The new program offers good value, and participating farmers will be protected from the unpredictable costs of crop losses due to bad weather such as the grain farmers in the Peace region experienced this year," Evans said.
Evans, who was scheduled to discuss the announcement with media this morning but was unavailable due to weather conditions, said he expects the revamped program to attract twice as many participants as currently employ crop insurance.
B.C. agriculture minister hears farmers’ concerns
Nov. 15, 1996
By Jeremy Hainsworth
Daily News Staff
Government interest-free loans would go a long way to mitigating the effects of the unfolding farm disaster and its long-term consequences for the Peace, farmers here told B.C.’s agriculture minister Thursday.
More than 50 Peace producers told Corky Evans of the low percentage of crops taken off the fields, of loans which cannot be paid and land which may not be able to be seeded in spring as a result of this year’s continual bad weather.
"We need money in the farms hands now to pay the bills," Tomslake farmer Harry Fister told Evans. "The townspeople need to have their bills paid."
"We’ve had bad harvests before but not the amount we’ve had this year" added Juste Hendricks. "In the meantime, the town and us guys are going to have a long, cold winter."
Evans appeared sympathetic to the farmers’ plight, stressing he was in the region this time to listen and take facts back to Victoria to see what can be done to help the situation.
Over and over again, the minister heard that crop insurance is not viable, that the returns for farmers in the case of disaster are not worth the cost of premiums. Of the farmers in the room, only a few were involved with the scheme.
Overall, only 17 percentage of acreage and 30 per cent of farmers in the area have crop insurance.
Closing the meeting, Evans stressed Victoria will not be giving money outright to help the situation, a deal he said would further work against crop insurance being made to work as it should.
"It’s not going to be like that," he said, "because the government doesn’t have any money.
"My job in coming here was to listen to the information ...and go back and find a creative solution within the context of the provincial situation."
Farmers face bleak future without help, MP Hill says
Nov. 15, 1996
By Gwendolyn Richards
Daily News Staff
A lack of good financial assistance programs spells out a bleak economic future for farmers and communities in the Peace Region, M.P. Jay Hill told the Chamber of Commerce Thursday.
Farmers’ optimism at the beginning of this year’s season prompted them to replace inadequate equipment and invest in more fertilizer and chemicals. Now, explains Hill, these farmers are facing upcoming or overdue bills for investments that gave no returns.
Hill says a major part of the problem farmers are facing is the fact that there is very little financial help for these sorts of crises. He outlined the existing programs farmers can look to, and explained why they don’t meet the current needs of this region.
Crop insurance is one program that is supposed to meet farmer’s needs, says Hill, but doesn’t.
"Crop insurance is supposed to exist to address weather-created crop production problems such as those experience by farmers this year," he said. But, Hill explained, only 21 percent of this year’s crop was covered by insurance.
Hill says that many farmers don’t carry insurance because often the money can be used for other expenses.
"The decision of whether to purchase insurance or not often comes down to the individual farmer’s ability to find the necessary funds," he said. "Because to a farmer insurance is viewed as another input cost, they must weight the pros and cons of purchasing it in relation to other necessary crop production expenditures...."
The problem, says Hill, is that crop insurance is expensive in that farmers must pay every year on the off-chance that the weather will not cooperate.
The Net Income Stabilization Account is another protection program available to farmers. Although a better program, according to Hill it still has its downsides.
In NISA, farmer’s contribute money to a fund that is matched dollar for dollar by the provincial and federal governments. Ideally, farmers are supposed to make deposits in good income years and withdraw money from their individual accounts on poor income years.
Although there is a high farmer participation in this program, Hill says there are still problems.
"Like a bank account, farmers can only take out what is in their account," he explained. "Obviously, the farmers with the largest savings in their accounts are those who have had sufficient disposable income to invest outside their day-to-day operations."
In addition, said Hill, payouts are given following the calculation of the farmer’s income and after receipt of the farmer’s intent to withdraw money. "Unlike a bank account or RRSP, the producer cannot instantly receive a cheque when needed."
Corky Evans at Peace River Regional District
November 14, 1996
By Cees Mond
Daily News Staff
Just minutes prior to Agriculture Minister Corky Evans entering the board room at the Peace River Regional District Thursday, the district board declared the Peace River region a disaster area.
The unanimously carried motion states the district "recognizes the disastrous situation faced by the agricultural industry in the Peace River area and the major impacts this will have on the economies, both local and beyond (its) boundaries." The district urges the provincial government to declare the Peace a disaster area, calling on both the federal and provincial governments to come with an appropriate response.
Evans, taken by the earnest of people that told him of the consequences of the failed harvest since he arrived in Dawson Creek around noon Thursday, told the regional directors he was prepared to agree with the people in the Peace. "You are experiencing a disaster," he said.
Nevertheless, he said, he was reluctant to respond by following suit and declare this area a disaster area.
"I'm not sure what law or history suggest is a disaster area or what you get from being one," he said.
Citing the poor financial situation of the Province of British Columbia, Evans told directors: "you will not be surprised that I'm not here with things in my pocket.
"My collegues and I have been sitting around the table and have been taking Humpty Dumpty apart for the last three months," he said, referring to the large financial cuts the government has had to make and will make more in the future.
Evans said his main reason for visiting the Peace was to see and hear first hand the agricultural problems.
"Otherwise you'd say: 'What should he even pretend to understand if he didn't even come up to see for himself,'" he said.
Directors explained to Evans the wide impact the farming disaster would have on all aspects of life in the region, "especially Dawson Creek that has farming as its mainstay," said Fort St. John Mayor Steve Thorlakson.
Chetwynd Mayor Barb Shirley said though her district is not as dependent on farming as it is on logging, the punch will also be felt there, quoting a bumper sticker saying: "If you can't support farmers, then don't eat."
"People in the North are independent and proud," she told Evans. "We don't want to ask for a handout. We don't like to ask for assistance, but this is really a disaster. We need your help."
Evans said his intent is to report back to Victoria and discuss the issue with the cabinet, probably hanging on to the response for a couple of weeks.
Minister Corky Evans Visits Chamber Luncheon
By Daily News Staff
B.C. Minister of Agriculture Cork Evans will join MP Jay Hill in addressing the Dawson Creek and District Chamber of Commerce meeting this Thursday.
Evans had been invited to the area by the region’s MLAs, the chamber, B.C. Grain Growers and councils to see for himself the unfolding farm tragedy here brought on by the year’s bad weather.
Although area farmers had asked for the minister to provide emergency funding to the region, Evans did not believe such a bailout of the industry here would be possible. Area producers and the chamber itself had also requested the area be declared a disaster area.
Hill will be speaking on current issues in the area such as transportation and agriculture.
The luncheon takes place at the George Dawson Inn at noon. The chamber asks you call the chamber office to make reservations should you wish to attend.
Feds Found $23 Million to Give Away Flags
By Daily News Staff
Peace Country farmers struggling through a dismal harvest season are used to being ignored by the federal government, Prince George-Peace River MP Jay Hill told the House of Commons Thursday.
"I would suggest that Peace River farmers have been well-accustomed, to use an old farm saying, to sucking the hind teat when it comes to agricultural services and the attention by the government," Hill told the MPs.
Hill said he wanted the opportunity to put all of the concerns of Peace farmers on the record in the House of Commons so that the Liberals couldn't plead ignorance. This includes the added expense and difficulty that farmers encounter in shipping their grain by rail to Prince Rupert and the ongoing shortage of rail cars.
"While farmers are demanding monumental changes to agricultural legislation, the Liberals are wasting time on minor adjustments," Hill said. "They also took time to find $87 million for Bombardier and $23 million to give away Canadian flags. Surely they can focus their energy on finding financial assistance for cash-strapped farmers."
October 31, 1996
By Cees Mond
Daily News Staff
DAWSON CREEK — There’s not much the provincial government can do to help farmers in the Peace facing a hard winter as a crop harvesting disaster continues to unfold.
Though B.C. Agriculture Minister Corky Evans is concerned about the situation and is planning to assess the it in person soon, he’s doubtful Victoria can provide any aid, he told the Daily News Wednesday.
"I’m trying with staff on a daily basis to remain apprised of the issue and to establish the extent of the crisis," Evans said.
He added it has happened often in Canada’s and British Columbia’s history that the government has come to the aid of farmers who’ve experienced a substantial crop loss, but not in recent years.
The problem there, he said, is in part because recent changes in international law prohibit the government, to a large extent, to offer aid that can be seen by other countries as unfair subsidies.
"When a government acts with what we consider to be good sense in the region, that is interpreted internationally to constitute a subsidy. The grain industry is an example of an industry which is under constant harassment from the United States for practices in Canada which they find not acceptable, even though in many cases they engage in the same practices themselves on a much larger scale," he said.
Evans referred to the sudden closure of the Cassiar mine in 1991 when people were surprised to hear then-premier Mike Harcourt say the government was not able to bail out that industry.
"So I’m not tremendously hopeful that a bail-out is legal or possible," he said.
Besides, said Evans, the government doesn’t have the money available.
"I think that a person would be a fool to think they can watch the premier say we have no money and then listen to the minister of agriculture say ‘Oh well, I got some!"
The minister said he would like to come and visit the Peace himself before raising the issue with the rest of cabinet, but wasn’t able to give a date for his visit.
"I think a person learns better visually than literally and I would like to have personal contact with the people experiencing the trouble rather than talk based on briefing notes from staff," he said.
Evans said one of his concerns is also that the problem this year will delay seeding next spring, causing many farmers to run into problems with crop insurance deadlines.
May Not Be Much We Can Do, Says Minister Evans
By Cees Mond
Daily News Staff
Though B.C. Agriculture Minister Corky Evans is very concerned about an unfolding farming disaster in the Peace Region and is planning to assess the situation in person, there might not be much the ministry can do to alleviate the farmers' problems, the minister told the Daily News Wednesday.
"I'm trying with staff on a daily basis to remain appraised of the issue and to establish the extent of the crisis, Evans said.
He said it has happened often in Canada's and British Columbia's history that the government has come to the aid of farmers that experienced a substantial crop loss, but not in recent years.
The problem there, he said, is in part because recent changes in international law prohibit the government to a large extent to offer aid that can be seen by other countries as unfair subsidies.
"When a government acts with what we consider to be good sense in the region, that is interpreted internationally to constitute a subsidy. The grain industry is an example of an industry which is under constant harassment from the United States for practices in Canada which they find not acceptable, even though in many cases they engage in the same practices themselves on a much larger scale," he said.
Evans referred to the sudden closure of the Cassiar mine in 1991 when people were surprised to hear then-premier Mike Harcourt say the government was not able to bail out that industry.
"So I'm not tremendously hopeful that a bail-out is legal or possible," he said.
Besides, said Evans, the government doesn't have the money available.
"I think that a person would be a fool to think they can watch the premier say we have no money and then listen to the minister of agriculture say 'Oh well, I got some!"
The minister said he would like to come and visit the Peace himself before raising the issue with the rest of cabinet, but wasn't able to name a date for his visit.
"I think a person learns better visually than literally and I would like to have personal contact with the people experiencing the trouble rather than talk based on briefing notes from staff," he said.
Evans said one of his concerns is also that the problem this year will delay seeding next spring, causing many farmers to run into problems with crop insurance deadlines.
By Cees Mond
Daily News Staff
Because farmers have been out and about combining their grain fields in the last couple of days, mainly in the South Peace, it's too early too tell exactly what the scope of the crop loss will be, said South Peace MLA Jack Weisgerber.
"I think it's too early to be absolutely definitive as to the degree of loss. There's still some slim chance at least of a bit of additional harvesting this fall," Weisgerber said.
Nevertheless, he said, the loss is likely going to be in the $30 million to $50 million range, with the added disadvantage that harvesting in the spring will delay seeding for next year.
"It's going to have serious implications for the farmers and broad implications for the communities generally," he said.
The MLA said he doesn't see very many good options for some kind of financial aid for the farmers, also considering that not too much of the crop is insured and government programs have become increasingly less flexible.
Grain coordinator for the B.C. crop insurance program, Bill Greenhalgh, in Fort St. John, estimates only 35 per cent of the farmers have some kind of crop insurance, covering about 21 per cent of the crops in the region.
In addition, the crop insurance program might not be able to pay out more than 20 per cent of every claim this fall because much of the crop is still standing on the field and might be salvageable next spring.
Because crop insurance usually guarantees farmers only about 70 per cent of their average production, Greenhalgh said, a lot of insured farmers can still achieve that by harvesting next spring.
"Some of them might have only a third of their crop harvested, but they might have had a pretty good crop. They could have almost reached their guarantee by only harvesting a third because there were some good crops out there," he said.
An inquiry with Environment Canada learned that the farming disaster is due mainly to lack of available heat for the crops to mature, said Brian Haddow, president of the B.C. Grain Producers Association.
While this region gets an average of 2,700 growing degree days (a unit of heat used in agriculture) per summer, the Rolla area, for instance received about a third less, 975, growing degree days this year. That means that in Rolla, the grain seed should have been in the ground by May 1 this year, he said. Because of the wet spring, most farmers weren't able to finish their seeding until May 25.
Farmington received even less sunshine, about 25 per cent less than Rolla.
"In Farmington, it was have been almost impossible this year to get a good crop," said Haddow.
Meanwhile, the appeal to premier Glen Clark by the Dawson Creek and District Chamber of Commerce to alleviate farmers' problems received wide attention by the media, the chamber reports.
Office manager Lynda Martin told the Daily News the chamber received phone calls from the CBC and other radio stations as far away as Saskatchewan. ITV/BCTV reporter Boni Fox flew into Dawson Creek on Tuesday to report about the looming disaster, talking to officials and local farmers.
Declare Peace a natural disaster area, farmers urge
By Cees Mond
Daily News Staff
DAWSON CREEK — Peace Region farmers are asking the provincial government to have the region declared a natural disaster area, opening the way for relief funding for farmers' families as the region heads to a disastrous $50 million crop loss.
"When you get to a situation where 75 per cent of the farmers in an agricultural area are unable to provide a basic income for themselves and their families, I guess it's a disaster area," said Brian Haddow, Peace Region farmer and president of the B.C. Grain Growers Association.
Haddow said the situation affects directly about 500 to 600 families who see their average income reduced from about $150,000 to one quarter of that, as in the whole Peace River area about 25 per cent of the crop is combined.
"When you realize that a normal farming operation costs about $100,000 per year, that doesn't even meet the financial commitments," he said.
The B.C. grain growers, with the support of the Dawson Creek and District Chamber of Commerce, are asking B.C. premier Glen Clark to instate a program whereby farmers can lend, interest free, up to $50,000 per farmer for a period of one or two years, so their families can survive the winter and keep the business afloat.
A similar program existed in 1986, following a drought in 1985, where farmers were given the opportunity to borrow up to $30,000 per farmer, interest free for two years, said Haddow.
Though the region as a whole is affected, including the Albert Peace, some farmers are worse off than others, he said.
"Individual farmers, depending on where they farm, have a different percentage. I know that there are some who have been unable to do anything."
According the Haddow, the areas most affected by the weather are the Farmington area and some areas north of the Peace River.
The situation sparked a meeting of approximately 40 Farmington farmers Monday, mainly members of the National Farmers Union, getting together to find solutions.
Grain farmer Allen Watson, present at the meeting in his capacity as Area D director of the Peace River Regional District, said all farmers agreed the the region is heading to a disaster.
"In most cases it was probably the worst year they'd ever seen in many years of farming in the area," said Watson.
Watson said if the B.C. government and the federal government understand the scope of the unfolding tragedy, some interim funding might become available, for instance in the form of advance payments through the Canadian Wheat Board.
He said farming organizations, including those of the Alberta Peace, should stick together to make sure the farming community speaks with one voice when dealing with governments.
Farming disaster will hurt city
Oct. 28, 1996
By Cees Mond
Daily News Staff
The Peace Region as a whole will be feeling the fall-out from a really bad harvest this year due to wet conditions throughout the year and an early winter, said Bruce Brolley, field extension agrologist with the Ministry of Agriculture.
"If you ever wanted a disaster story, this would be your disaster story, Brolley told the Daily News. "The situation out there in the field is going to be felt by the city, there’s no doubt about it."
The alarming news has sparked Dawson Creek Mayor Bill Kusk to write a letter to Agriculture Minister Corky Evans, urging him to "come to the Peace River district and see for (him)self the disaster that is unfolding in the agricultural community."
Brolley said he estimates about 20 to 25 per cent of the farmers’ crops are harvested — with the exception maybe of fescue and canola that saw a fairly good harvest earlier this fall — and there’s not much hope the get the rest in as well because of the snow and wet fields.
"We’ve had a wet spring — one of the worst in 50 years — we’ve had a cool wet summer, very wet fall, and an early snow," said Brolley. Nevertheless, he said, there was a potential for high yields this year, comparable to last year’s good harvest.
"It’s just that we ran out of growing season. We needed another three weeks and you would have seen yields and quality like you had the year prior," he said.
Some of the grain might still be harvested in the spring, said Brolley, but even then there will be some crop loss and the quality will definitely not be more than feed-grade.
"Even if they harvest next spring, that’s going to put the farmers behind again because it’s going to be delayed that much more to plant next year’s crop," said Brolley.
In his letter to Evans, Kusk asked the minister to review the appropriate provincial measures there are available to help the farmers survive. Brolley said he expects little help from that side though.
"The government is trying to get away from ad hoc disaster relief payments, and I don’t think the provincial government has any money" he said.
He said there might be money available for farmers in the federal revenue protection plan (RPP) program that was discontinued a few years ago.
"There is still some money left in the account that has to go back to the farmers. If they could get that pay-out this fall, it would help a lot of these guys get through the wintertime."
Brolley said are farmers not hurt equally. It depends on the area where they are farming.
"I’ve got farmers out there right now who haven’t harvested an acre and they’re likely not going to harvest an acre. Other guys, they’re almost finished," said Brolley.
He said farmers in the Farmington area, for instance are hurt more than farmers in the Rolla area where most of the crops have been harvested.
Even if all grain was harvested, the lower quality means a substantial loss in revenue. With the difference between number 2 wheat and feed grade, for instance, being about $1.25 per bushel at the moment, 60 bushels per acre means that a small, 2,000 acre farm loses $150,000 on this year’s crop. Every acre that’s not harvested adds another $160 to $320 to the loss, depending on yield and quality grade. For larger farms the loss can go into seven figures.
"That’s going to be felt by the community," said Brolley. "Farmers are not going to be buying that new pick-up truck this fall, or they are not spending money on new furniture."
September 17, 1996
By Gwendolyn Richards
Daily News Staff
There’s a very simple answer to how the grain harvest is going this year.
"It’s not," said Bruce Brolley, field extension agrologist for the B.C. Ministry of Agriculture.
And it’s not as if Brolley is being pessimistic. This summer’s wet weather has put the grain harvest on hold for the time being. Little of the grain has been taken off and few fields have been harvested due to the rain.
"This summer’s weather has put the crops behind schedule by three growing weeks," said Brolley.
Brain Haddow, president of B.C. Grain Producers, agrees.
"This year’s crops have been extremely slow maturing - and I don’t use the word ‘extremely’ lightly. They’ve been slower this year than in the past 25," said Haddow.
Normally, farmers would have been combining their fields by now, but instead are being forced to make important decisions regarding their crops.
"Farmers are making management choices," said Brolley, "and each choice has its downside."
While farmers may choose to swath their fields and hope that the ground between the wind rows dries up, this has some potential negative side effects. Swathing, which piles the cut grain into rows, is more likely to create water damage to the crops, resulting in quality losses. On the other hand, without swathing, farmers can’t combine their fields because their combines are likely get stuck in the mud.
Many dislike the thought of swathing their fields. It’s an extra operation that would, under normal circumstances, be unnecessary. Even with swathing farmers must face the wrath of wet fields. According to Brain Haddow, president of the B.C. Grain Producers, some farmers have gotten their swathers stuck in the mud.
Only one farmer that Haddow knows of has tried to combine part of his fields. The grain that was brought in is showing nine per cent more moisture than normal, says Haddow, meaning quality losses for farmers.
East of Dawson Creek towards Grande Prairie, farmers have already been able to take off ten times as much as farmers here. Prairie farmers have not only had bumper yields, but have already harvested their crops. In fact, says Haddow, it seems to be only the Peace Region having these problems with too much wet.
Other consequences are abounding from all this rain also. Water damage from too much rain is affecting the quality of the crops. According to Brolley, what could have been top grade grain this year will likely be #3 feed wheat on the market.
On the other hand, Haddow points out that despite quality losses, the quantity of grain is high.
"Like Alberta, we too have bumper crops. The volume of this year’s crops is very good - better than average, unlike last year," said Haddow. "The quality may not be there, but the quantity is excellent and Dawson Creek traders could do well this year."
Brolley does not have high hopes for the canola or pea harvests either.
"Canola is producing a lot of green seed meaning a lower money return per bushel. Peas are splitting in the fields," he said. "Both of these crops will face quality losses."
No one can predict when the harvest will actually take place. Haddow predicts that with three to four days of drying weather farmers will be able to swath their fields.
For now, farmers are forced to play the waiting game.
Crop insurance acts as safety net
Sept. 5, 1996
By Cees Mond
Daily News Staff
The frost that hit the Peace Region Wednesday morning has undoubtedly done some damage but has far from wiped out this year’s wheat crop, say officials at B.C. Agriculture and farmers alike.
"The frost seemed to be worse as you go north," said Bruce Brolley, field extension agrologist with B.C. Agriculture.
Brolley said he consulted with farmers in the region to find that farmers experienced a different level of frost.
While the Dawson Creek airport measured a low of -0.5 C, in the North Peace, farmers recorded -3 C. The Spirit River area had cold pockets that went down to -6 C. In the Grande Prairie area there were only isolated areas of light frost.
Other factors than temperature play a part in how damaging the frost is, says Brolley. The length of the frost period is important — one hour is not as damaging as four hours. What might have saved some farmers is that the crop was wet due to the heavy rainfall this weekend as the moisture insulates the kernels slightly.
Rolla farmer Garry Scott had some frost near his house in a valley, but other fields that were higher up on the hill had hardly any frost.
Scott said he probably has some damage, but it’s hard to tell exactly how much until the wheat matures more.
If the crop loss is considerable, farmers who have bought into the B.C. crop insurance program will be compensated for part of their loss, said Lee Bowd, crop insurance specialist with the Ministry of Agriculture.
The B.C. government administered crop insurance program pays out to farmers who’s income from their fields falls below a level that is guaranteed to them by the program, based on the farmer’s long term average.
"We term it a safety net or a risk management tool," Bowd said.
He said the B.C. crop insurance program was designed to make sure the farming industry is able to survive despite heavy crop losses. The rationale behind it, Bowd said, is that — insurance or no insurance — the government has no choice but to pay damages to farmers in order to save the industry from a complete breakdown when a large portion of the crop fails.
Farmers must decide to buy insurance before March 31, Bowd said.
"Because it’s risk management, they have to be planning ahead, Bowd said, explaining that the program is not meant to bail out farmers at the last moment.
Scott said farmers must lose a considerable amount of their crop to have some insurance money paid out to them.
"In my opinion, the value of the insurance, as far as (Wednesday) night’s frost goes, is pretty well irrelevant," he said.
Not all farmers have crop insurance — Scott estimates the percentage of participating farmers at 20 to 25 per cent — largely because a lot of farmers think they can survive one complete crop failure.
Though he bought insurance for more than 20 years, Scott hasn’t done that for a number of years now.
What Scott — and most other farmers, he said — does have is hail insurance, bought through private insurance companies. Most hail insurance policies pay out even when just a small part of the crop is affected.
"Hail can be a real devastating thing. It can just wipe out a crop in 15 minutes," said Scott.
When asked if he has enough reserve to survive a year in case of a complete crop loss, Scott laughed.
"We think so," he laughed "Until it actually hits, you know."
First frost hurts farmers
Sept. 4, 1996
By Cees Mond
Daily News Staff
While for most people, it just means getting up a few minutes early to scrape the windshield, a few degrees of frost at this time of year can mean a 25 per cent drop in income for the area’s grain farmers.
Frost hit the Dawson Creek area last night, -0.5 C at the airport, flight services attendant Ross Donough said, adding it might have been one, maybe two degrees colder in certain low-laying, isolated areas.
For grain farmers, a few degrees of frost means their grade no.2 wheat drops to grade no.3, or even further to Canada Feed grade, said grain farmer Ross Ravelli. He said the difference between no.2 and Canada Feed is about 75 cents per bushel of wheat.
"Usually a crop can take down to -4 C before they term it what’s called a killing frost," Ravelli said. "Even if it’s below that, let’s say -2 C or something, at this stage of the crop being fairly green, it can affect the grade dramatically."
Farmers are faced with a late crop this year because of less than ideal seeding condition in the spring.
"We already worried about this frost in the spring," he said.
Ravelli said with the warm weather last week, the wheat matured quite a bit. Another week like that and the farmers could start the harvest. The rain of the last couple of days, however, slowed down the maturity process.
"By the forecast, it doesn’t look any better. It could have a dramatic effect on (the grain) over the next few days," said Ravelli.
Donough said by the looks of it, Dawson Creek could have another few nights of light frost.
"We can probably expect more, unless we have a lot of cloud cover, then we might luck out," he said.
Donough said frost at this time of the year is not unusual. Last year the first frost hit the area on Sept. 5. In 1994 the first frost fell on the region in late August.
Even if we would get another week of bright sun and warm temperatures, said Ravelli, after a killing frost, that doesn’t matter much anymore.
"If we get a heavy frost, a killing frost, the heat won’t do a heck of a lot because the frost will already have killed the grain."
Early Frost Devestating North Peace Farmers
By Dave Williams
Sterling News Service
FORT ST. JOHN — Time is rapidly running out for North Peace farmers facing the devastating consequences of an early frost, says a local elevator manager.
Mike Burton of Cargill said yields on most crops are looking good at present, despite running way behind normal because of a delayed start to seeding and a less than ideal growing season.
"We're probably a good three weeks from seeing any large amount of harvesting," he said.
"If we get a frost now, probably to Sept. 10, we're going to see a major loss in yields. Quality is also a concern at this time of year because it's getting so late. A frost will really challenge the quality. If we get a frost in the next couple of weeks, we're going to see a major loss in yield and quality."
Environment Canada reports the fall frost hits the Fort St. John area on Sept. 13 on average, but has occurred as early as Aug. 15 and as late as Oct. 7. The Dawson Creek area once saw a late spring frost hit on July 7 and an early fall frost on July 22, but not in the same year.
Burton said wheat prices are down substantially from what they were at this time last year, but returns to farmers are still better than they have been for a long time.
"Our producers' main concern is to get some frost free days until the 10th or maybe middle of September," he said.
Although wheat appeared to be in for a major upswing in planting this season, Burton said that just didn't materialize for many local farmers.
"Wheat intentions were going to be higher, but the season was late so a lot of the wheat acres that were going to go in didn't get planted," he said. "A lot of that was switched to barley and canola."
Baldonnel area farmer Jerry Hill said the wheat crop, in particular, will do well if the weather holds out a few more weeks.
"The canola is not as healthy as it could be. There are a lot of nice wheat crops. As long as we don't have an early frost, there could be a lot of nice wheat in the area," he said.
Hill said he's expecting yields of 50-60 bushels per acre of wheat — a respectable level — particularly considering the overly wet growing season.
"Wheat handles the excessive moisture better than other crops. There's some nice oat crops out there. Canola and barley don't handle the excessive moisture as well, so they're not as healthy," he said.
Hill described the wheat price as "very positive," noting he had intended to go heavier into wheat this year, but poor seeding conditions early on limited planting.
"If we get a decent crop to go with it (prices), I think everybody will smile," he said.
June 26, 1996
By Dane Gibson
Daily News Staff
Rain, crop yields, and sun are all measured in farming. The latter is measured in ‘heat units’ and much like everyone in the Peace region the crops are waiting for sunshine.
"What scares us is when it rains we are down heat units. We need a specific number of units to generate a crop," said Alberta Wheat Pool manager Dale Hofstrand. "We are getting growth but crops aren’t maturing as quick as we’d like."
The gray weather is starving crops that need sun to mature. Earlier in the season rain was delaying seeding, but most area farmers managed to get their wheat crops into the ground in time.
"Wheat prices are still high and about 90 per cent of acreage that was intended for wheat went in," said Hofstrand. "Right now we are about ten days behind. There has been a certain amount of crop damage from moisture, but one hot August can turn that around."
Alberta Wheat Pool agro-manager Shawn Pearson, as part of his job, must work closely with area farmers and their crops. He said some areas are worse than others, but that the whole area needs some heat.
"It is unpredictable right now. A few fields have been reseeded with the worst area being West Farmington; every little rain cloud that comes along seems to unload there," said Pearson. "With an equally bad August the crops won’t ripen, they’ll stay green."
Main More Agriculture Articles Site Contents
Compu-nerd
2000