Features Fruit Production
Canada, B.C. invest in tree fruit industry

July 2, 2010, Kelowna, BC
– The Government of Canada, in partnership with the Province of British
Columbia, recently announced an investment of $5 million to support B.C.s tree
fruit industry.

July 2, 2010, Kelowna, BC
– The Government of Canada, in partnership with the Province of British
Columbia, recently announced an investment of $5 million to support B.C.s tree
fruit industry.

The funding will help
farmers to develop new marketing opportunities, infrastructure, and further
improve orchard pest management.

“This investment will
allow the tree fruit industry to find new technologies that will help them stay
ahead of the curve in the global market,” said Stockwell Day, president of the
Treasury Board and Minister for the Asia-Pacific Gateway.

“This is a significant
investment that will give tree fruit growers in this province the innovative
edge they need to strongly promote B.C. grown fruit and compete with producers
in other regions,” said B.C. Minister of Agriculture and Lands Steve Thomson.
“In our discussions, the industry identified some areas, such as marketing and
infrastructure, where they wanted to focus efforts and make further improvements.”

The Province of B.C.
announced $2 million in funding, and the federal government will provide an
investment of $3 million more. This combined funding will be used for new
environmentally friendly packing and storage infrastructure, marketing opportunities
that raise the profile of fresh and processed apples, and to build on work
accomplished by the sterile insect release program in the Okanagan and Kootenay
regions.

“Everyone benefits from a
healthy and prosperous fruit industry,” said B.C. Fruit Growers’ Association
president Joe Sardinha. “There are approximately 800 orchard operators in B.C.,
and together they generate $900 million in economic activity that creates jobs
and delivers high quality products to markets in B.C. and around the world.”

The federal funding
investment is made through the AgriFlexibility Fund, a five-year, $500-million
fund created to help reduce costs of production and improve environmental
sustainability for the sector; promote value-chain innovation and sectoral
adaptation; and respond to emerging opportunities and market challenges for the
sector.

The Governments of Canada
and B.C. also offer a suite of jointly-funded Business Risk Management programs
under Growing Forward. AgriInvest, AgriStability and AgriInsurance (crop
insurance) work together to provide farmers with support against farm income
and production losses beyond their control.