Regional Agricultural Strategy

Update and presentation to the Regional Board

An update on the Regional Agricultural Strategy and the Background Report were presented to the Regional Board on the December 15, 2022 board meeting. View the agenda for more information.

Regional Agricultural Strategy - Background Report

The Background Report has been completed and is available here. The Background Report will inform the future development of the new Regional Agricultural Strategy, slated for 2023.

The Central Okanagan has many agricultural assets:

• A large farming community
• Robust agricultural land base
• A long history of agriculture
• Proximity to urban markets and regional, national, and international distribution nodes

Agriculture is becoming increasingly prioritized within the context of regional planning considering:

• The fast-growing population base
• Increasing commercial and industrial development pressure on farmland, and
• The need for climate change resiliency.

The Regional Agricultural Strategy -  Background Report project has engaged residents across the RDCO to provide insight into the challenges and opportunities for the agriculture sector and land base. In addition to public engagement, we have completed a profile of the agriculture sector and a policy analysis for agriculture to inform the Background Report. 

This Background Report project is the first phase of a larger planning project to update the 2005 Regional Agricultural Strategy. A modernized Regional Agricultural Strategy will provide much-needed updates to:

• Identify new issues
• Re-confirming existing objectives
• Provide a road-map for the strategic growth of agriculture in the region.

Get involved

Stakeholder meetings: 

• The Agricultural Advisory Committee has been involved and consulted, as well as the Regional Growth Strategy Committee. We have also presented to the RDCO Regional Board several times through the process.

Interviews: 

• We have interviewed key agricultural representatives, including producers, processors, distributors as well as other organizations in the agricultural industry.

Open house: 

• The RDCO hosted a public open house on November 3, 2022 from 5 to 7 p.m. at Ellison Heritage Community Centre where we presented mapping results, collect information regarding agricultural market opportunities, and engaged the public in discussions.
• If you missed the event, please feel free to view the open house presentation at this link: https://youtu.be/zv5FRMzXV9c

Survey: 

• Thank you for participating in the community survey, we received over 100 responses. The community survey was used gather feedback on issues, challenges, and opportunities of agriculture and the agricultural community. The survey was available until November 15th and is now closed.

Check back

Information will be updated on this page as we move through the process.

This Regional Agricultural Strategy was funded in part by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and the Government of British Columbia through programs delivered by the Investment Agriculture Foundation of B.C.