Peace region farmers face drought-related challenges, economic pressures

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. – The president of the BC Grain Producer’s Association says he has mixed feelings going into this year’s harvest season.

Malcolm Odermatt, a third-generation farmer in the Peace region who grows canola, wheat, barley and more, says farmers are looking forward to an early planting.

“Generally, we’re in the field in the second week of May, but this year, we could almost be in the fields today,” Odermatt explains.

However, he says that’s also concerning since the reason for the early start to the season is the ongoing drought in northeast B.C.

“We need moisture to grow crop,” Odermatt says. “Our crops are 100 per cent rain fed, that means we can’t irrigate, we can’t water, we have to rely on the snowpack to replenish a bit of the soil moisture [when it melts], and then rains to come.”

Beyond the environment itself, Odermatt says another concern looming over the heads of grain farmers is declining prices for their crops, coupled with rising production costs thanks to the carbon tax.

“All our inputs have went up and up and up, yet the product we produce is sold on the global market, so we don’t dictate what the price is,” he says. “People buying it? They do because they’re also buying from South America and from Europe, and it’s a global product, so we’re product-makers and price-takers.”

By the end of 2023’s harvest season, farmers were struggling due to that year’s drought, with some not convinced government programs would be enough to help.

Energeticcity.ca contacted other local farmers for this story, none of whom responded in time for publication.