More than 2,100 people have signed an online petition calling for a rescue of Canada’s BC Tree Fruits co-operative, which has collapsed owing CA$50m.
The petition, addressed to David Eby, premier of the British Columbia provincial government, agriculture minister Pam Alexis and members of the legislative assembly, says the loss of the co-op leaves farmers with “no one to market, store and sell table grapes, apples and pear fruit”.
It warns: “Compounded with increased interest rates, and record unaffordability, small farmers who depend on the co-operative are at risk of being pruned from the BC tree fruit industry.”
The co-op announced its intention to wind up in a letter to grower members on 26 July, citing more than $58m in liabilities and a disastrous crop failure.
It has filed for creditor protection after receiving a repayment notice from the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce of more than $50m, saying poor crops following freezing weather in mid January had brought the “final tipping point” in its cash crisis. The sector was still reeling from the impact of a freezing winter in 2022 and the heat dome of 2021.
The co-op, which has provided storage and packing facilities for 88 years and comprises over 330 local farmers who produce tree fruits including apples, cherries, pears, peaches, nectarines, apricots, prunes, plums and table grapes.
Its collapse comes as many fruit farmers face “catastrophic crop losses for three years in a row from extreme weather”, the petition warns. “This winter was especially severe, wiping out all of the valley’s peach, apricot and nectarine crops and severely damaging cherry orchards.”
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The provincial government has stepped in to offer support, with Eby and Alexis pledging changes to the province’s AgriStability programme, offering farmers an additional $15m in claims for crop losses, and another $5m for a “tree fruit climate resiliency programme”.
Eby has also called on the federal government for support, including a pause in loan repayments, adding: “We need them to step up … We deserve the same treatment as farmers in Saskatchewan and Ontario and Manitoba, in Alberta. The crops are different here, the needs are different here and we need a federal government that responds to that.”
The petition to save the co-op calls on the provincial government to halt the decision to liquidate assets and stop the its board from proceeding with its dissolution until members are given an opportunity to vote.
“Under the Cooperative Association Act, a meeting of all members is required for such a move to be legal,” it adds, “and growers were not consulted or given an opportunity to vote. We urge you to allow members an opportunity to appeal the decision made by leadership to wind down operations and liquidate assets. As members of a cooperative, BC Tree Fruit Co-op growers deserve, at minimum, the right to be consulted in a restructuring process of their co-operative that impacts their livelihoods.”
It also wants current members given access to the co-op to pick and store their fruit for the 2024 season. “Existing co-op members must be given the opportunity to have access to critical assets like picking bins, packaging, storage and CA rooms to get through the 2024 season without more losses,” it says.
And it wants the government to “back the loan and fund the BC Tree Fruit co-opperative, which has been the backbone of BC’s Tree Fruit industry for nine decades”.
“As a co-operative fruit packer,” says the petition, “the governance structure of BC Tree Fruits Cooperative is unique to most large fruit packers who typically structure themselves as corporations. The co-op needs to be protected because co-operatives give members active participation in policy development and decision-making processes, including the right to vote at general meetings and special resolutions that impact their sustainability in the industry.
“Pushing BC Tree Fruit growers to depend on private packers is the wrong move. Private packers don’t have the capacity to pack all of the fruit that will be available on market, nor do they have critical infrastructure like Control Atmosphere (CA) rooms to store apples long term. From experience, we also know private corporate fruit packers and big grocers can’t be trusted to do the right thing and give a fair return on commodity. ”
It adds: “In an already devastating tree fruit year where BC fruit farmers are reeling, the loss of the tree fruit co-operative would be a huge blow to small family-run farms that depend on the co-operative model to stabilize the tree fruit industry.
“Protecting local farmers’ livelihoods is directly tied to ensuring BC’s food security and thriving agriculture industry. Right now, the future of nearly 300 fruit farmers is at risk. We urge you to intervene and listen to the hundreds of BC Tree Fruit Co-op members who want to appeal this catastrophic decision and be given access to critical storage assets to get through the 2024 farm season.”
