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COUNTRY LIFE IN BC • MAY 2017 Grow & Gather Farm Expo gives small ag a big venue
New event focuses on education for the modern homesteader, rural and urban by TAMARA LEIGH
SURREY – Small lot growers will find new opportunities for learning when the industry’s newest event opens their doors on June 10-11 at the Cloverdale Agriplex in Surrey. The Grow & Gather Farm Expo promises to provide learning for anyone seeking the skills, tools and knowledge for the modern homestead lifestyle. “There has been a gap in training for small farmers and even backyard farmers,” explains Bill Hardy, one of the show’s founders who also organizes the CanWest Horticulture Show. “I did a bit of research and, really, we think the timing is right. We have the Millennial generation which likes to know where their food comes from, likes to support local
and likes to do it themselves in a lot of cases, but where do they go for training? There’s a pent-up demand out there.” As the owner of a four-acre
hobby farm and garden centre and member of the Maple Ridge agricultural advisory committee, Hardy wants to help address the issue of under-utilized farmland in the Lower Mainland. According to the landmark
inventory of agricultural land use in Metro Vancouver the BC Ministry of Agriculture released in 2014 (based on 2011 data), half the ALR land in the region isn't farmed. Of this, nearly 70% – 25,880 acres – is in Surrey and Langley. “That’s a lot of farmland
that isn’t growing any food,” he says. “We have put together a show that provides
information from growing herbs on a balcony to production on the small acreages throughout Metro Vancouver. It’s a small farm alternative to the Pacific Agriculture Show.” The show will feature four stages and over 50 seminars throughout the weekend, as well as exhibitors and a children’s entertainment area and planting garden.
Urban farmer Kelowna’s master of
intensive agriculture, Curtis Stone, will headline the program. The internationally recognized urban farmer, author and consultant has established himself as an expert in quick growing, high value annual vegetables for sale direct to consumer. Stone established his farm,
Green City Acres, in Kelowna in 2010. In an eight-month growing season, the farm generates over $75,000 per year on only a third of an acre. The farm has been recognized internationally as the flagship example of how profitable and productive urban agriculture can be. He will offer six sessions throughout the weekend, including: $80,000 an a Quarter Acre, From Lawn to Farm, Intensive Production Systems for Urban Farms, and Farming in the City.
Other
sessions offer information from tax tips for small-scale
CURTIS STONE
farmers to solar power, beekeeping to butchery. People with a particular interest in small- scale livestock will find sessions on backyard chickens, rabbits, and pigs. Garlic
enthusiasts will find information on planning and managing a crop as well as marketing and future trends. Want to talk dirt? There’s a full stream of sessions focusing on soil health, compost and integrated pest management Organizers have also
partnered with the Young Agrarians, who will offer sessions on their growing resource network for new entrants into small-scale agriculture, including their Land Matching pilot program. They will also offer a session to explain the nuts and bolts of leasing land. “The challenge of creating
a program for four stages hasn’t been filling the program, it’s figuring out how not to expand,” says Hardy. “The education value is outstanding. If you’re into farming at any of the small levels, you aren’t going to find a better event to learn at.”
Partnerships
Organizers expect about 2,000 people to attend and are hoping to become the go-to event for individuals and organizations focused on small-scale agricultural production as it grows. They are already partnering with FarmFolk CityFolk, Young Agrarians and the Langley Sustainable Agriculture Foundation. According to the
Vancouver urban farming census, sales from urban farms increased by 226% between 2010 and 2013. At that time, total urban farm food sales in the city of Vancouver were over $418,000. The updated Urban Farming Census is expected to be released by the Vancouver Urban Farming Society later this spring. More information about
speakers and registration is available online at [growand
gatherfarmexpo.com]. There are also
opportunities for suppliers, equipment companies, community organizations and other agriculture and garden- related groups to book space and exhibit.
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