New Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR) regulations announced Monday will allow breweries to set up within the ALR – however, it’s not yet clear how the new rules will affect Persephone Brewing Company.
Agriculture Minister Norm Letnick announced the new regulations on June 15 in an effort to “promote the use of co-operatively owned processing facilities,” and to meet the “demand for value-added B.C. goods.”
The announced changes include permitting breweries, distilleries and meaderies on ALR land on terms similar to wineries, “requiring at least 50 per cent of the products used to make the beverage to be grown on the farm,” a press release stated.
The “50 per cent” wording could be a problem for Persephone. CEO Brian Smith hopes the minister simply left out the “or” clause that’s included in the rules for wineries and cideries, which are already permitted in the ALR.
“The wineries and cideries have an ‘or’ that says you have to use 50 per cent of ingredients from the land or you have to purchase it from a B.C. farm under a three-year contract,” Smith said.
“If breweries just have to meet the 50 per cent threshold and that’s the only amount, then small farms like Persephone aren’t going to be able to produce 50 per cent of our ingredients. We grow 100 per cent of our hops, but barley can’t be grown on an 11-acre farm.”
Smith wrote a letter to the minister this week in an effort to get a full breakdown of the regulation, which is expected to be enforced soon but has not yet been officially released by the Agricultural Land Commission.
“I have a hard time understanding why they would differentiate it from wineries and cideries and make the regulations so drastically different,” Smith said.
“It’s a little unclear exactly how that’s going to be. I’m just waiting to hear back.”
Smith is also still working with neighbours to address concerns around noise at Persephone and noted he’s recently changed the times of music events and types of music played outside to better suit the community’s wishes. He also said Persephone adheres to local bylaws including those pertaining to noise.
“And we have submitted an application to the regional district to get further clarity both at the regional district board and at the ALC as to what everyone feels is an appropriate use of the land. So that process has begun,” Smith added.
