Fraser Valley farmers get access to funding boost, technology to overcome labour shortages
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ABBOTSFORD — Farmers in the Fraser Valley and the rest of British Columbia can apply to take advantage of the second round of funding under the B.C. On-Farm Technology Adoption Program. The provincial and federal governments are making up to $2 million available this year.
A government news release says the initiative is meant to help farmers adopt new labour-saving technology to enhance productivity, profitability, and food security.
The funding supports the purchase of equipment and robotics designed to operate independently and adapt to their environment, such as automated weeding equipment, harvesters, and even grading machines that require minimal human interaction, which helps farming operations that are dealing with labour shortages. In the program’s first round, 54 B.C. farms received a combined $2 million to acquire new equipment.
Van Eekelen Enterprises is a farm in Abbotsford that took advantage of the funding to purchase a robotic machine that weeds vegetable crops. Speaking on video in front of the autonomous machine as it rolled through the field, farmer Michel van Eekelen described the task the machine eliminates from human need. “It uses a combination of lasers, mechanical weeders and potentially selective spraying to eliminate weeds in the field.”
