Living in a province as large as BC it is easy to forget what a precious commodity our farmland is. Only 5% of BC’s land is suitable for farming and only 1% of that has the best soil with the highest capability for growing crops. Worse still, the majority of high quality soils are found in the Lower Mainland, Southern Vancouver Island, and the Okanagan: areas that have experienced extreme demand for new development. Seventy-nine percent of BC residents currently live next to land responsible for 78% of BC’s farm revenues, resulting in pressure to convert agricultural land to other uses.

Local food production reduces our dependence on imported foods and associated costs and impacts, yet BC’s agricultural sector currently supplies less than 50% of the province’s food requirements. read more >>