NOVEMBER 2016 • COUNTRY LIFE IN BC Early snow downgrades harvest in the Peace
Production insurance adjusters are still assessing losses
by TAMARA LEIGH
DAWSON CREEK – Farmers in the Peace woke up to white fields on October 1, creating a harvest headache for everyone with crops still standing.
“It’s winter up here,” says Irmi Critcher, who is usually combining in early October. “The season has shifted by a month. We were in the field early in April, and now we have a dump of snow in October.”
Weather patterns during the harvest season have been extremely wet, starting with a major rainfall in early September that soaked the fields just when the first crops were ready for harvest. “It was very disappointing. We had a really beautiful crop this summer. We had heavy rain in June, but the crop was at a stage where it could handle it,” Critcher explains. “With the cold, wet weather this fall, there’s going to be a lot of wheat around that could have been #1 milling wheat but will end up as feed.” The early snowfall is keeping BC Ministry of Agriculture’s Production Insurance team busy. “We’re not thinking it’s a complete disaster at this point,” says Lonny Steward, manager for Business Risk Management. “Overall, the Peace harvest is way above average this year. They were looking at a really good year and have lost the top end of their yield that would help them be successful.” “The ones that have a majority of acres snowed under could result in claims but we aren’t sure yet if those acres can be salvaged later this fall or in the spring,” he adds.
The production insurance team is processing
notifications from producers and will be inspecting farms with severe losses and working with farmers to establish what their yields could be in the coming weeks. Steward says some crops, like canola, may be able to overwinter and harvest successfully in the spring. Less resilient crops, like peas, are expected to be a total loss. “Where we’re expecting the biggest loss is on oats north of Fort St John. Those crops are probably the most severely affected,” he adds.
For many who grow on
contract, including Critcher, downgrades in quality may leave them looking for new markets.
“Different companies handle it differently. Some companies roll the contract forward to the next year so you can grow the crop again and see whether you can meet the criteria. Other companies honour the contract and let you deliver your crop but give a huge discount on price because you didn’t meet the quality specs,” she explains. “The other thing we are doing is looking for brokers that specifically handle feed grain. We don’t want to be stuck going into next year with feed grain in the bins,” adds Critcher.
Production insurance may offer some relief for the quality loss through their minimum grade guarantee. “All of our crops offer a minimum grade guarantee. If the grade falls below the guarantee, we’ll convert the value of the quality loss into yield and pay out that way,” say Steward.
Using red wheat as an example, he explains that production insurance will look at the price difference between the specified minimum grade (No. 3) and feed wheat. If the difference is 15%, then the total yield for that crop will be reduced by 15%, and they will pay a larger claim.
While there will be some growers with severe losses, overall Steward expects that many of the farmers in the Peace will either have managed to get a good portion of their crop in already, or will find a way to get it off and recover some value.
“Peace region farmers are some of the most progressive and aggressive farmers in the country for being able to harvest their crop quickly,” says Steward respectfully, noting that many have invested in grain driers and special equipment for working in wet conditions. “If there’s any possible way to get the crop in, they’ll get it in.” “The incredible efforts they make to get crops in quickly have probably minimized the losses this snow has caused. They manage a lot of their own risk, and when they have disasters, production insurance is in place to help.”
MK Martin’s Pull Type snowblowers connect to your tractor’s 3PH. The hitch facing design allows you to drive straight forward pulling the hitch instead of backing it into the snow, allowing you to easily guide the blower around objects. This also means you no longer have to keep looking over your shoulder when blowing snow or driving into a cloud of blown snow.
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Winter has come early for Peace River grain farmers. (Photo courtesy of Irmi Critcher) $2.5 million invested in Peace flood prevention by TAMARA LEIGH
DAWSON CREEK – Extreme weather events in the Peace seem to be the norm this year. Heavy rains in June caused catastrophic flooding in Dawson Creek, Chetwynd, Pouce Coupe and Fort St John, washing out bridges and roads and leaving many rural residents cut off from the rest of the province.
The provincial government has announced a $2.5 million investment to help the Peace River Regional District with mitigation work to reduce the risk of flooding in the future. It is hoped that the work, including debris removal, re-sloping and re-vegetation, will be completed before the winter freeze.
The $2.5 million is in addition to close to $1 million
provided to individuals and approximately $4 million expected to be paid out to local governments in the PRRD through the provincial Disaster Financial Assistance program following the floods in June.
The total estimated cost of damages from the June Peace River rainfall event could reach close to $100 million.
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