Okanagan Edition Regional Newsletter
June 2026 | Feature of the Month: Upcoming Events: Accepting Applications: Business Risk Management Programs: Flood, Drought, and Wildfire Preparedness: Resources and Services: | Replanting Healthy Vineyards | Northern Tour: When: June 9, 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM (PT) Where: 4500 Stewart Rd, Kelowna, B.C. Southern Tour: When: June 10, 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM (PT) Where: 8123 148 Ave, Osoyoos, B.C. Join us for the Replanting Healthy Vineyards field tour, hosted in collaboration with researchers and viticulturists. This engaging field day invites you into active vineyard sites to explore real-world applications of practices that support healthy vineyards and resilient ecosystems. Through hands-on demonstrations and open discussions, participants will gain insights into: - Replanting
- Cover crops and identification
- Soil health and amendments
- Biodiversity in the vineyard
- Identifying and mitigating the spread of invasive species
Contributors: Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada, UBC, BC Living Labs, BC Ministry of Agriculture and Food, BC Grapegrowers’ Association, BC Wine Grape Council + Sustainable Winegrowing BC, and Okanagan and Similkameen Invasive Species Society. Register for the northern tour Register for the southern tour | Webinar: Indigenous Agricultural Development Network | When: June 23, at 10:00 AM (PT) Where: Online (Zoom) Register here | | Join us for the Indigenous Agricultural Development Network, hosted by the B.C. Ministry of Agriculture and Food. Starting June 23rd, 2026, on the fourth Tuesday of each month, we will share knowledge with agricultural experts on a wide variety of topics pertaining to Indigenous Agriculture and Food Systems. The June 23 session will host Jacqueline Jennings from Ispahcâw Consulting and Ione Smith from Upland Agricultural Consulting as they present Stewarding Food Systems Projects:, A Decision-Making Guide for Indigenous Communities. Indigenous food and agriculture projects often navigate layered systems: community priorities, governance processes, land use considerations, operational capacity, and capital constraints. Clear structure helps prevent delays, strengthen decision making, and support food sovereignty outcomes. Stewarding Food System Projects: A Decision-Making Guide for Indigenous Communities is grounded in years of Indigenous leadership, partnership, and collective learning across British Columbia. Indigenous Nations and organizations have consistently affirmed that food systems are inseparable from Indigenous laws, cultures, economies, and responsibilities to land and water. Food is not simply a sector or service, it is a living system that sustains community wellbeing, governance, and self-determination. | Traceability Adoption Program | Traceability Adoption Program (TAP) applications are now open! Receive cost-shared funding towards the purchase and installation of traceability systems, practices, technologies or infrastructure to help you meet new and existing regulatory requirements for the traceability of food, animals, and seafood products. Learn more and apply | Processor Productivity Program | Do you want to build your value-added farm business? The B.C. Government has launched the Processor Productivity Program (PPP) to help food and beverage processors improve efficiency, reduce costs, and stay competitive. The Program opened on March 25, 2026, and will remain open until fully subscribed. The program is offered in two phases and combines practical support with cost‑shared funding: -
Phase 1 – Lean training and on‑site operational assessment: Participating businesses receive industry‑focused Lean training, hands‑on assessments, and expert guidance to identify inefficiencies, reduce waste, and improve workflow. The program is delivered by Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters (CME) on behalf of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food. Apply and learn more Funding is provided in part by the governments of Canada and British Columbia under the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, a federal-provincial-territorial initiative. Seafood businesses are solely funded by the Government of British Columbia. | Beneficial Management Practices (BMP) Program | Submissions are open for: - Extreme Weather: Plans & Assessments
Book a Call:
If helpful, book a 10-minute phone consultation about your application. Prior to booking an appointment, please start your draft application and provide the ID number (similar to: BMP-202425-0####). Learn more The program is delivered by the Investment Agriculture Foundation of B.C. (IAF). Funding is provided in part by the governments of Canada and British Columbia under the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, a federal-provincial-territorial initiative. Additional funding has been provided by Clean B.C. | Farm Specific Management Program for Salmonella Dublin in B.C. Dairy Herds (Phase 2) | About 30% of BC dairy herds are infected. Salmonella Dublin (S. Dublin) is a bacteria that has significant negative impacts on dairy health, welfare, and productivity. It can cause calf loss, abortion, and reduced milk yield. Given the significance of this disease, the province runs an investigation and management program. Get reimbursed through one of these options: - Option 1: Individual farm plan for strict control or eradication on S. Dublin infected farms
- Option 2: Individual farm plan for prevention of S. Dublin infection on S. Dublin free farms
Learn more This program is funded in part by the governments of Canada and British Columbia under the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, a federal-provincial-territorial initiative. | Disease diagnosis in smallholder pigs, sheep, goats, and poultry | Do you have less than 100 pigs, poultry, sheep or goats on your premises? The province offers a program for disease diagnosis in smallholder (<100) poultry, pigs, sheep and goats in B.C. The purpose of the program is to support producers and their veterinarians in managing their animal's health, and to monitor for regulated diseases. Learn more | Understanding disease patterns in B.C. dairy calves | To support producers to optimize calf health on B.C. dairy farms, the Animal Health Center (AHC) offers subsidized post-mortem exams ($75 per case) to investigate calf illness. To receive the subsidized rate, the submissions must include: - A completed submission form including the farm Premises ID number
- Antimicrobial use history on the submitted calf (View form, please record ID on the AHC submission form)
- 5mls of blood in an EDTA (purple top tube) collected before death of the submitted calf if possible
Learn more | Insurance and Income Protection Programs are an important part of a farmer's overall risk management strategy. AgriStability and Production Insurance work together to provide the best coverage for producers. | The Statement A submission deadline has changed! - Deadline: June 30, 2026 (was September 30)
- Final deadline: September 30, 2026 (was December 31)
To be eligible for payments, participants must complete and submit a Statement A every year. Learn more about How to file your Statement A. Our new online forms make it faster and easier to participate, and if you ever need help, just give us a call — we’re here to support you! AgriStability helps stabilize farm income by managing the risk of large income declines. The AgriStability program is based on the income and expenses of individual farms. Learn more | Production Insurance helps producers manage their risk of crop losses caused by hail, spring frost, excessive rain, drought, flooding and other extreme weather events. In British Columbia, Production Insurance is available for: Need Help? Production Insurance Representatives are available to help with claims, application and renewal process. Learn more | Drought monitoring has begun: Monitor conditions and make a plan for limited water | The May 15 Snow Survey and Water Supply Bulletin reports the provincial mountain snowpack at 71% of normal, down from 83% on May 1. Driven by warmer-than-normal temperatures in April and early May, approximately 40% of the seasonal snowpack had melted by May 15, compared to a typical 25% by this point in the season. Combined with warm seasonal weather forecasts for the summer, these conditions are elevating drought hazards heading into the growing season, particularly along the southern coast and southern interior. With conditions evolving across the province, the B.C. River Forecast Centre is now actively monitoring drought conditions. As drought levels are set, now is a good time to be planning for the possibility or reality of limited water and to be looking for opportunities to use water more efficiently. Staying informed, fine-tuning irrigation scheduling, and coordinating irrigation timing with neighbours can all help reduce stress on local water sources through the summer. Small actions do add up. Actions to help you plan for drought: - Bookmark the B.C. Drought Information Portal where you'll find current drought levels and monitoring information for your area, or subscribe to the weekly B.C. Drought and Water Scarcity Bulletin for current conditions, local impacts and emerging water scarcity risks across the province.
- Visit our Drought in Agriculture and Irrigation webpages for drought management resources and tools to support you with irrigation scheduling.
- Start planning for the possibility of limited water this season. The Irrigation Decisions with Limited Water factsheet walks through how to get the most out of a reduced water supply, exploring different approaches across your acreage.
- Use the BC AgriWeather dashboard to inform on-farm decisions. The dashboard provides near real-time weather data from more than 250 agricultural weather stations across the province and weather-based decision support tools for evapotranspiration, degree days, and spray conditions so producers can stay a step ahead in their daily operations.
- Schedule your irrigation with the help of the Agriculture Irrigation Scheduling Calculator. The Calculator recommends when to start your next irrigation or how long to irrigate based on local weather data, 5-day forecasts, and your farm’s crop, soil, and irrigation system specifications. Available for the web and as a mobile app for Android and iOS.
| BC Wildfire Service Spring 2026 Seasonal Outlook | “High Drought Code values indicate an increased potential for extreme fire behaviour.” - BC Wildfire Service Spring 2026 Seasonal Outlook Take steps to prepare now: - Sign up for local emergency notifications
- Register to receive emergency alerts from your local community (regional district, municipality, or First Nation) so you can act quickly. Find more info on their website.
- Plan to protect livestock
- Do you need a “buddy farm” where livestock could be relocated temporarily? Or will you move animals to another range or safer pasture?
- Register for Premises ID to help local responders provide efficient support to protect livestock.
- Reduce risk of wildfire damage to farm structures
- What’s the leading cause of structure ignition from wildfires? Find out here
- Small steps to reduce chances of structure ignition:
- Avoid storing items leaning against structures; store items inside a structure or in a pile at least 10m away from buildings.
- Close in openings that embers could enter through (such as soffits, or gaps in siding) with 3mm non-combustible metal mesh.
- Create a 1.5m non-combustible immediate area around buildings using gravel, concrete, or just digging down to mineral soil.
- Get custom recommendations to reduce wildfire damage to your structures with a free FireSmart Farm & Ranch Assessment to identify practical changes. Learn more at firesmartbc.ca/farm-and-ranch/
Small actions now can make all the difference during wildfire. For a comprehensive, made-in-B.C. preparedness checklist, check out the Farm & Ranch Wildfire Preparedness Guide & Workbook at firesmartbc.ca/farm-and-ranch/ | Agricultural Land Inventory (ALI) | Ministry vehicles will be making observations in your region. The BC Ministry of Agriculture and Food and the Partnership for Water Sustainability in BC are completing an Agricultural Land Inventory (ALI) across the Regional District of North Okanagan (June 15th to June 26th) and the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen (July 6th to July 17th). The ALI program started in Pitt Meadows in 1996 to support the Ministry’s Strengthening Farming Program. Since then, ALIs have provided insight into the current state of the farming landscape across the province, including within the Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR). Agricultural Land Inventory data has been used to: - Model potential impacts of climate change and different adaptation strategies;
- Model agricultural water demand for current and future climates;
- Inform the development of municipal Official Community Plans and Agriculture Area Plans;
- Understand the extent of actively farmed land and other major activities on the ALR land base; and
- Understand impacts to agriculture from new developments, bylaws, or regulations.
To complete an ALI, Professional Agrologists and ALI technicians perform visual observations to help confirm mapped crops, irrigation, natural vegetation, buildings, livestock facilities, and farm practices within the ALR and parcels where significant farming is observable.Visual observations are conducted only from public roads using vehicles marked with “Government of B.C.” or “B.C. Ministry of Agriculture and Food” signs. Watch for survey crews making frequent stops between the hours of 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. across the region. This project was funded in part by the governments of Canada and British Columbia under the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, a federal-provincial-territorial initiative. Learn more | Cover Cropping in the Lower Mainland: Delta Cover Crop Variety Trials | In this new video from Organic BC, explore the 2024–2025 trials led by the Delta Farmland & Wildlife Trust, where more than 20 cover crop varieties were planted side by side. Learn how different options perform and dig into practical insights to help farmers make informed cover cropping decisions and boost farm sustainability. Watch the full video Funding for this project has been provided by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada through the Agricultural Climate Solutions (ACS) – On-Farm Climate Action Fund (OFCAF) | New AgriServiceBC video series: How to Stage Your Forage Crop | This video series demonstrates the importance of staging and understanding growth patterns in forage crops to make informed management decisions including nutrient management, pesticide applications, and harvest timing. The video series features three forage crops including corn, grass, and alfalfa. Watch the videos using the buttons below. | Seeking Farmers for 2027 Dry Farming Trials | Targeted Grazing Resources | Targeted grazing is the intentional use of livestock and enhanced grazing to meet specific site or landscape management objectives (e.g., weed management, wildfire risk reduction). As a wildfire risk reduction tool targeted grazing reduces fine fuels such as grasses and other forages that influence wildfire behaviour. A pilot led by the British Columbia Cattlemen’s Association (BCCA) in collaboration with the province shows that targeted grazing can be an effective tool in the risk management toolbox. Targeted grazing can lead to less fuels on the landscape, decreasing risk and improving landscape defensibility.
A project technical report and a site selection guide have been posted to the Ministry of Agriculture and Food silvopasture section of the Agroforestry webpage. Additional factsheets and guides will be posted online as they become available. Learn more | B.C. Indigenous Pathfinder Service | Looking to start or grow an Indigenous food systems initiative?
The B.C. Indigenous Pathfinder Service offers free, personalized, concierge-style support to Indigenous farmers, food producers, entrepreneurs, businesses, economic development corporations, non-profits, and communities across British Columbia.
We’re here to help you navigate and access:
- Programs, services, and funding opportunities
- Government systems, processes, and pathways
- Project planning and development support
- Connections to partners, organizations, and collaborators
Whether you’re just getting started or scaling an existing initiative, the B.C. Indigenous Pathfinder Service can help you navigate available resources and supports.
Get in Touch
Email: IndigenousFoodSystems@gov.bc.ca
Phone: 236-426-5024
Funding for the B.C. Indigenous Pathfinder Service is provided by the governments of Canada and British Columbia through the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, a federal-provincial-territorial initiative. Learn more | Accepting samples: Plant Health Laboratory | The province’s Plant Health Laboratory is accepting samples now! The laboratory provides diagnoses for plant health problems affecting crops and plants grown in B.C., including: - Plant diseases
- Assessments for non-pathogenic (abiotic) disorders
- Insect pests
Collect a sample that shows the problem. A whole plant with roots and soil is best. If the plants are small, send several. If insect damage is suspected, collect the insects if possible as well as damaged plant parts. Refer to "How to submit plant samples for diagnosis" for detailed information on collecting and packaging a sample. More information | Contact your local Regional Agrologist Emma Holmes - North Okanagan Email: emma.holmes@gov.bc.ca Chris Zabek – Central Okanagan Email: chris.zabek@gov.bc.ca Lindsay Hainstock – South Okanagan/Similkameen Email: lindsay.hainstock@gov.bc.ca AgriService BC connects farmers, food processors and new entrants to agricultural services, programs and information that can help them succeed. | | | | | |
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