JULY 2017 • COUNTRY LIFE IN BC Deep roots give Shannon Farm bright future


Being off the beaten path doesn’t mean being out of touch by TAMARA LEIGH


PORT ALBERNI – In a scenic corner of the Alberni Valley, Shannon Farm is the last vestige of a once vibrant dairy community. It shouldn’t be surprising that this farm family has persevered; they are drawing on a family history of farming in the area that goes back 130 years. “My grandfather’s aunt’s husband-to-be homesteaded here in 1887,” recounts Terry Shannon, who runs the farm with his brother, Dan, and their sons, Josh and Ty. “He took up 160 acres and they farmed here until the turn of the century, then they went back to Ontario for health reasons.” In 1908, Shannon’s


grandfather, Alvyn, went homesteading in Alberta with three of his brothers. He farmed until the start of World War I, when he went overseas to fight in the trenches as a Lewis gunner. Severely wounded and left for dead near the end of the war, he eventually ended up in an English hospital where he met and married May, a young nurse.


When drought and


Depression shut down the Alberta farm in 1935, May wrote a letter to her husband’s aunt to ask if she would sell them the property in the Alberni Valley that had sat vacant and unfarmed for 35 years. She agreed, and the family headed to Vancouver Island. “They came to this piece of


ground, and there was absolutely nothing here at that time. They built a house and a dairy barn and started milking cows during the Second World War,” Terry


Shannon recounts. Terry’s and Dan’s father, Don, farmed with his wife, Elizabeth, into his 80s. Don passed away in April this year. The brothers picked up the business in turn, and now their sons have recently joined in, giving Shannon Farm hope for at least one more generation. “There has been a pretty steady decline in the number of dairy farms in BC over our long history and I think that’s going to continue,” says Terry. There were over 30 dairy farms in the Alberni Valley in the early 1950s. By the 1990s, just nine remained. “There might be some peripheral issues but virtually in every case in the Alberni Valley, there just wasn’t a next generation coming along or interested in being a dairy farmer,” Terry explains. Running a dairy in a more


remote community has challenges and benefits. “You have to be way more independent,” says Dan, the younger of the two brothers. “We have a ton of supplies on hand. We’re so far away from everything that if we have a major issue, we have to be able to look after ourselves.” Off the beaten path,


production costs can go up, but the challenges are offset by the benefits of lower land prices and the absence of the urban/rural issues that face many farms in the Lower Mainland. It has also allowed them to expand. Over the years, the Shannon brothers have assembled 800 acres, allowing them to practice intensive grazing rotation and pasture- feed over 200 cows from April to October each year. “We farm a little different


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TAMARA LEIGH PHOTO


from what a lot of dairies are doing now. We pasture our cows for as long as we can, and bring them in just long enough to get them over winter,” says Dan. “We also are one of the few farms in BC that doesn’t have digital dermatitis in the herd.” Terry credits the closed


herd and pasturing cows with keeping digital dermatitis at bay. The brothers haven’t brought a cow onto the property since the early 1970s, and enforce their own biosecurity protocol when people visit from other farms to limit the risk of introducing the infection. “It’s one of those things that once you get it, you don’t get rid of it,” says Terry. “Feet and legs are a big issue in the dairy industry. Getting cows off concrete is really good for their feet and good for herd health overall. It’s recognized in the industry; it’s just awkward to do.” In addition to their commitment to herd health, the Shannons are invested in maintaining the health of the


land and environment around them. “We try to farm a little bit ahead of the curve and be cognizant about the environment,” says Terry. Manure is stored all year and pumped through irrigation guns in the summer for spreading. The three salmon-bearing streams that run through the property are fenced and enhanced with fish beds to encourage spawning. For the past 25 years, Dan has run a salmon hatchery from a small hut at the back of the property. He hatches about 50,000 Coho fingerlings every year, and distributes them in the local creeks. Their efforts have piqued the


interest of neighbouring farmers and provided opportunities to share what they have learned about stream health and habitat enhancement. With a proud family history


and a forward gaze, the Shannons have hope for the future of farming in the Alberni Valley. As the area gains popularity with developers and people looking for an affordable rural lifestyle, they are clear that the best way to protect agriculture is by keeping it profitable. “If the farmland was so valuable that people could grow something on it and make a living, you wouldn’t be putting houses on it,” say Dan.


Provincial Livestock Fencing Program


NOW accepting applications for the Provincial Livestock Fencing Program along travel corridors


Eligibility Requirements


• Schedule 2 Highways, Schedule 1 Highways, and Railway Corridors. Secondary (sideroad) paved routes may also be considered.


• Must be a livestock producer. • Fence must be part of an existing fencing system to contain livestock. “BONANZA 2017”


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Application forms available at: http://www.cattlemen.bc.ca/fencing.htm Call TOLL FREE 1.866.398.2848 to have an application mailed to you.


If you didn't submit an application prior to the 2016 deadline, please feel free to submit an application for future fencing programs.


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