Kelowna to count farms, measure output during update of agricultural plan

CITY'S LAND BASE IS MAINLY ZONED FOR AGRICULTURE

KELOWNA – An update to Kelowna’s agricultural plan will measure amongst other things the number of farms, predominant crops and the amount of under utilized agricultural land.

Kelowna is in rare company, city councillors heard, as a municipality having the majority of its land base (55 per cent) as agricultural land.

Sustainability coordinator Tracy Guidi told councillors the goal of the agricultural plan is to develop clear policies to protect and promote agriculture, increase production and improve access to locally grown food, all while helping guard against rising food costs and climate change.

Guidi told councillors a public consultation and input from key players will be added to guidance from the Agricultural Land Commission and the Ministry of Agriculture in the final version of the plan.

The entire process will take 15 months, Guidi said, and includes an online survey, a stakeholder session at the ECCO in Mission Creek Park and a pair of open houses, the first on June 8 in Mission Creek Park from 4 to 6:30 p.m., plus an open house from 10 a.m. to noon on June 11 at Save-On Foods on Cooper Road.

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