Regional Foodlands Access Service

A viable and resilient local food and agriculture system is important to the capital region's sustainability. Local food and agricultural production systems face many challenges, including the loss of farmland, cost of farm operation, age of farmers, and food prices. 

A Regional Foodlands Access Service is being established to deliver a Foodlands Access Program that will support new and young farmers by facilitating affordable access to productive farmland. This work delivers on recommendations from the 2019 Regional Foodlands Access Program Feasibility Study, which identified recommendations to help address farmland access and increase local food production across the region. 

The proposed Foodlands Access Program will focus on:

  • Reactivating an underused portion of Bear Hill Regional Park for a five-year agriculture pilot project that will host farmers to start or expand their farming operations.
  • Providing grant funding to support farmers who participate in the B.C. Land Matching Program, pairing private landowners with aspiring farmers for long-term land leases. 

On September 11, 2024, the CRD Board supported Bylaw 4602 Regional Foodlands Access Program and voted to proceed to elector approval. This Alternative Approval Process is expected to run in Q4 2024, completing in Q1/Q2 2025. 

Regional Food and Agriculture Strategy

Food and agriculture in the CRD are part of a larger interconnected system that includes planting, irrigation, harvesting, processing, distributing, preparing, marketing and consumption. Managing food waste, soil nutrients, wildlife and invasive species are also integral to the food and agriculture system. 

The Regional Food & Agricultural Strategy (RFAS) details regional food and agriculture objectives, issues and opportunities to guide action and foster leadership in developing a resilient food and agriculture system. The Food and Agriculture Task Force delivers on the first recommendation of the RFAS with regional, cross-sector relationships working together on identified priorities.

Thanks to the ongoing work being done by the CRD and community partners, the updated 2018 Regional Growth Strategy (RGS) targets increasing land in food production by 5,000 hectares by 2038. The RFAS and the RGS work in tandem to guide planning and decision making in the region.