Darcy Smith
Roger Woo instantly knew he wanted to farm in the Lower Mainland from the first moment he saw the region.
With experience growing crops across North America, from Virginia to Ontario, he felt most drawn to growing food in this fertile valley for a number of reasons, including a sense of community and access to markets.
But, like many other young and new farmers in the region, he knew he was starting down a tough path.
“I knew I wanted to farm in B.C.,” Roger says, “but I saw significant challenges to acquiring appropriate farmland in the area, both in terms of finding land and cultivating relationships with landowners.
“I know there are people out there who have land, and people who want land, but we aren't necessarily able to make the connections ourselves.”
Surrey, where Roger is now farming, has 6,000 acres of unused farmable land.
That’s where Young Agrarians comes in. A resource network for new and young farmers, Young Agrarians offers online resources, educational events, land access programming, and business mentorships for new farms in start-up. Landowners, whether they’re farmers themselves or want to see their land farmed, can also plug into the Young Agrarians network to find a farmer. Through an online U-MAP (a play on U-Pick) land registry, both landowners and farmers seeking land can list themselves and connect with others in the region.
Once a farmer decides they’re ready to set up in the Lower Mainland, or a landowner commits to making land available for farming, the Young Agrarians Land Matching Program is their next stop. This innovative program, now in its pilot phase, is a partnership with the City of Surrey and a collaboration with Quebec’s successful Banque de terres agricole (Land Bank), which has been matching farmers to land for several years.
The Young Agrarians Land Matching program emphasizes a personalized, hands-on model that screens farmers and land opportunities, then matches farmers and landowners with similar visions and needs. If there’s a spark, the Land Matcher facilitates a “dating” process, where the farmer and land owner get to know each other and map out their land agreement with the Land Matcher’s support. Finally, the agreement is vetted by a lawyer.
At its heart, the Land Matching Program helps address the number one challenge for new farmers in southern BC; the prohibitively high cost of land. Land and housing prices in the Lower Mainland are some of the highest in Canada, and far exceed what a new farmer in start up can expect to earn. Leasing land gives new and young farmers the opportunity to get their farm businesses off the ground without risking it all on an unaffordable mortgage, or having to move away from family, friends, and markets to regions where land prices are more reasonable.
The Land Matching Program also supports farmers and landowners who want to ensure their land is farmed, now and into the future. The majority of farmers in BC are age 55 and up, and less than five per cent are 35 and younger. Two-thirds of farmers plan to retire in the next 10 years, and almost half of retiring farmers don’t have a succession plan. For landowners, the advantages in leasing land lie in tax exemptions (farm tax status), land revitalization, the opportunity for retiring farmers to take on less work, and knowing that the land is helping feed the community.
It is clear that both landowners and new farmers are looking to connect and need support during the process. As Roger says, “Young Agrarians excels at opening up avenues for those relationships to begin.”
Through the Land Matching Program, Roger met landowner David Feldhaus and in May broke ground on David’s land in Surrey. His new farm, The Farmhouse Bard, will soon be supplying restaurants in the Lower Mainland with tomatoes, greens, and much more. “I came to this process with my farm dream, and have received step-by-step support to make it a reality,” says Roger.
The benefits of helping new farmers establish themselves extend beyond that farmer’s enterprise. “By getting involved with Young Agrarians, I am now connected into the local agriculture community, and have accessed a wide variety of farm resources,” Roger says. “Young Agrarians connects people to land, and ultimately facilitates relationships—which is the most important piece in building sustainable local foodsheds.”
About Young Agrarians (YA): In B.C. Young Agrarians is a partnership with FarmFolk CityFolk. Our mission is to grow the next generation of farmers in Canada. To learn more about us visit: youngagrarians.org. The Young Agrarians Land Matching Program is a partnership with the City of Surrey, in collaboration with Quebec’s Banque de terres agricoles. Funding is provided by Vancity, the Real Estate Foundation of British Columbia, and the Ministry of Agriculture under Growing Forward II, a federal-provincial-territorial initiative. ■
Darcy Smith is the Young Agrarians Land Matcher for the Lower Mainland, offering hands-on, personalized matchmaking services to farmers seeking land and land owners with land available to lease, and support in developing land agreements.
