Landless farmers sow dreams in spare spaces
Vacant Metro land being put to use
Land prices almost ended Jeffrey and Ava Reeve’s agricultural aspirations.
But thanks to a pilot project that matches landless farmers with Metro Vancouver land owners who have space to spare, Reeve Pastures was launched on Nov. 4. The small farm is home to sheep, goats, hens and ducks.
“We’d looked at buying land, but the cost was completely prohibitive,” said Ava, 28. “The mortgage would have been overwhelming.”
Instead, the couple leases land from a Glen Valley farmer interested in slowing down.
“I like the independence and the lifestyle,”” said Jeffrey, 31. “There’s something very direct and basic in the production of food.”
With a $25,000 investment from the provincial and federal governments, the pilot project led by the B.C. Young Agrarians and the Farm Folk City Folk Society aims to create seven to nine new farm operations in Metro Vancouver in 2018.
A similar project in Surrey last year helped connect several farmers and landowners, including David Feldhaus. Hoping to see his land used for agriculture, the landowner was introduced to a chef-turned-vegetable farmer through the Young Agrarians.
“Seeing our fields blooming with row after row of organic vegetables is proof of the value provided by the land-matching program,” he said.
B.C. Agriculture Minister Lana Popham said the government wants to help young people overcome some of the obstacles to farming.
“We hear over and over again that the average age of farmers in Canada is rising. People say young people don’t want to farm, but I disagree with that . ... I’ve spoken to many young people who want to farm, but the biggest barrier is access to land.”
When she was a farmer, Popham saw fellow farmers “booted off the land” when landowners exploited weak lease agreements.
“There’s nothing more frustrating to a farmer than a broken lease,” she said.
The land-matching program screens owners of under-utilized land and farmers ready to start a business, supporting both parties in the development of legal contracts.
About half of farmers under 35 in Canada lease land, said Sara Dent with B.C. Young Agrarians.
“The prohibitive cost of farmland in southern B.C. means that we have to facilitate solutions to land access if we want to see a future generation farming the land,” she said.
For the Reeves, who have a three-year lease agreement, the land comes with a mentor.
Glen Valley farmers Fred Glasbergen and Beverly Lawrence were ready to slow down and have time to travel, but still wanted to see their land put to use. Glasbergen has been sharing his knowledge and skills with the Reeves.