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September 4, 2013
Inside
Back to school means back to the bargaining table and possible labour disputes as 27,000 school support staff are in a legal position to strike, columnist Tom Fletcher reminds us. ...............................
ALAN TYABJI, chief executive of the B.C. Tree Fruit Cooperative, speaks at the unveiling of a new packing line at the Winfield apple packinghouse last week.
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KEVIN PARNELL
/LAKE COUNTRY CALENDAR
âź AGRICULTURE INDUSTRY
Updated packing house will help local orchardists compete with US fruit prices
With the mileage
KEVIN PARNELL
on your personal odometer adding up, you realize this may be the last time you do certain tasks, says faith columnist Jim Taylor. ...............................
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Flyers â Budget Blinds â Lake Country Builders Mart â Shoppers Drug Mart â Staples
A new, $735,000 packing line at the Winfield apple packinghouse will bring costs for Okanagan apple growers in line with its chief competitors in Washington State. Those were the thoughts of Alan Tyabji, the chief executive officer of the B.C. Tree Fruit Cooperative after a public announcement and unveiling of a new apple packing line in Winfield last week. âWe had antiquated equipment and we needed help,â said Tyabji. âThe reality is with the changes this line will bring, not only is it eas-
ier to grade our fruit but the fruit that comes out the other end is so much cleaner that it reduces costs as well.â Together with cherries, Okanagan apples make up 80 per cent of the tree fruit industry in the Okanagan. But the industry has been lagging behind places like Washington State when it comes to technological improvements. The aging packinghouse in Winfield was a prime example. Tyabji said this investment will bring the industry onto equal footing with Washington State and allow Okanagan apples to better compete
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WITH THIS CHANGE WE ARE NOW CAPABLE OF MATCHING WASHINGTON PACKING COSTS. WE WERENâT ABLE TO DO THAT BEFORE BUT WE ARE NOW. Alan Tyabji, B.C. Tree Fruit Cooperative
in the market place. âThe growers in our cooperative and our farmers want to thank both levels of government for this investment,â he said. âWith this change we are now capable of matching Washington packing costs. We werenât able to do that
before but we are now.â The investment was made under the federal and provincial Tree Fruit Market and Infrastructure Initiative and comes on the heels of a $5 million funding announcement in 2010 and a further $2.7 million last year that was aimed at streamlining and
improving operations at the facility. âThere is great competition to the south of us and around the world,â said Kelowna-Lake Country MP Ron Cannan, who was on hand for the announcement Wednesday. âBut we have some great farmers in our province and we want to help them out.â The investment by government is part of a broader strategy that is aimed at improving operations in the B.C. Tree Fruits Cooperative. âThis investment in new technology will lower operating costs and lead to high-quality tree fruits for consumers,â
said Gerry Ritz, federal agriculture minster. âIt will also ensure our tree fruit producers can meet market demands and remain competitive in the global marketplace.â Pat Pimm, the provincial agriculture minster was also on hand at the announcement. âItâs wonderful to see the excitement for agriculture in this part of the province,â he said. âThe Okanagan has an incredible tradition of producing fruit. This funding will help the tree fruit industry get their products to market more efficiently and earn more dollars.â newsroom@ lakecountrynews.net