SEPTEMBER 2019 • COUNTRY LIFE IN BC


Province extends deadline for


meat consultation


Industry says it was shut out of original consultation process by TOM WALKER


MERRITT—The province’s latest bungle in the seemingly endless consultations on meat processing in the province have added yet another note of frustration to the voice of Julia Smith. Smith, president of the Small-Scale Meat Producers Association, is baffled at the province’s reasoning for not including industry in a request for feedback from local governments about class D slaughter licences, which allow holders to slaughter 25 animal units and engage in limited retail sales in 10 of the province’s 27 regional districts. “They said if they told us,


they’d have to tell everybody,” she says. “What is the worst that could happen if you told everybody?” Unlike at facilities holding class A and B licences, the slaughter process at Class D establishments is not inspected by the province. The BC Ministry of


Agriculture asked local governments on June 3 for input on “proposals for new class D regions or sub- regions; and designation of new regions or sub-regions.” Submissions were to be accepted through July 19. Smith says there were three


problems with the process: it came in the midst of summer holidays, regional districts are generally unfamiliar with the concept of class D licences, and the timeline was a short


six weeks. Moreover, industry wasn’t


included. “We heard about this second-hand,” says Smith. “We scrambled to make a big fuss and got an initial extension. And that’s when they told me they would have had to tell everybody.” The initial extension ran until July 26, but was soon extended to October 1. Smith says that the extra


time gives small producers a chance to speak with their local governments and explain the business case for having a D-class abattoir in their region. “We’d like to help the


ministry get the feedback they are asking for,” says Smith. “The small-scale meat industry is a legitimate business with proven market demand and we need access to more processing – or we are hamstrung.”


Small-scale meat producers need to be able to process animals every month, explains Smith, who operates Blue Sky Ranch outside of Merritt, but that’s difficult right now given the long lead times abattoirs require. “I’m trying to book for December and I can’t get a date,” she says. “I don’t even bother trying for September, October, November.” Her association is asking for


more D-class plants across the province, not only in the Thompson Nicola Regional District where she farms. TNRD is not considered


21


Top seller


The Vancouver Island Holstein Club’s decision to move their sale from October to July was by all accounts a good one. Auctioneer Ian Paton, far left, sold high seller Wedgwood Airlift Laureen for $5,500 to Ken Kooyman of Westcoast Holsteins (second from left). Consignor Ridley Wikkerink of Stanhope-Wedgwood stands between him and Laureen, with Pete Vanden Dungen at the halter. Joining them are William Wikkerink (pedigrees) and Caitlyn Tuytel. AMANDA POELMAN PHOTO


remote and is not allowed to have D-class abattoirs at the present time. “I think if the TNRD and


other regional districts have a chance to learn about what the economic opportunity is here, I think they will get behind this,” she says.


Seasonal issue Nova Woodbury, executive


director of the BC Association of Abattoirs, isn’t sure more abattoirs are needed. (The province has commissioned a study of slaughter capacity in BC, due for delivery this fall.) She travels across the


province working with both inspected and uninspected plants, and feels the problems are limited to set times of the year. “My feeling is that we only


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