The Ministry of Agriculture and Food has proposed a new regulation to encourage more food processing in the Agricultural Land Reserve on land that is not well suited for primary production. UBCM has provided a submission to share local government perspective and requests.
The new rule would allow areas of Class 5-7 soil in the ALR to host processing operations, provided at least 5% of the food being processed is grown or raised in BC. The current policy allows food processing operations on ALR lands with any soil quality provided 50% of the of the crops come from the farm (or a fellow co-op member).
In our submission, UBCM highlighted the diverse interests and perspectives of our members regarding the use of ALR lands, focused on two key points:
Local regulation: It is UBCM’s understanding that the proposed 5 percent rule would follow the structure of the existing 50 percent rule wherein local governments would not have the ability to prohibit food processing that met the requirements of the 5 percent rule but would be able to further regulate using zoning and other land use planning tools.
As there could be instances where combination of adjacent uses, the capacity of existing infrastructure and other local factors would make a parcel unsuitable for food processing, UBCM is asking that the Ministry reconsider the ability of local governments to prohibit this use of ALR land.
Enforcement: As the addition of food processing under the 5% rule will create a need for additional enforcement, UBCM would is asking the Ministry to consider the financial and capacity impacts that this will have on both local governments and the ALC.
The Ministry has extended the consultation period to September 18, 2026. Local governments, First Nations, farmers, food processors, and other stakeholders are encouraged to provide submissions to the Ministry: AF.Minister@gov.bc.ca