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BC Tree Fruits to Thrive Under New Leadership as Algoma Orchards Expands to the Okanagan
OLIVER, BC – Effective April 2025 – In a bold and promising move for the future of British Columbia’s fruit industry, Algoma Orchards, Canada’s largest independent apple grower, will assume operations of BC Tree Fruits. This marks a significant milestone for growers and the agricultural community across the Okanagan Valley and the province at large. Through a strategic partnership with a local investor group, led by Wildstone Capital of Penticton BC, Algoma Orchards is investing in the region by re-establishing the state of the art, 200,000 sq. ft. storage and packing facility in Oliver, BC and re-opening the fruit storage facilities in Keremeos and Summerland. With full operational autonomy, Algoma will collaborate directly with local growers, bringing fresh energy, proven expertise, and a renewed sense of purpose to the valley’s iconic fruit industry. “This is an incredibly exciting chapter for our business and for BC growers,” said Kirk Kemp, President of Algoma Orchards. “I’ve been growing apples for 50 years, and it’s an honour to help restore strength and stability for farming families in the Okanagan—many of whom faced uncertainty when BC Tree Fruits announced it would be winding down.” Kemp is clear-eyed and confident about the road ahead. “BC Tree Fruits has a storied legacy in Western Canada. While it’s seen challenges in recent years, we believe we’re bringing the right formula for a strong comeback—one that has already proven successful at Algoma Orchards: an unwavering focus on grower partnerships, best-in-class quality, unbeatable taste, and constant innovation. This is what excites our retail partners—and ultimately, consumers.” Importantly, the BC Tree Fruits name will remain, preserving its deep-rooted brand equity and significance across Western Canada. About Algoma Orchards: A proud fourth-generation farm based in Newcastle, Ontario, Algoma Orchards is the nation’s largest independent apple grower, the leading producer of organic apples, and the largest fresh cider supplier in Canada. Their expansion into the Okanagan signals a long-term commitment to revitalizing the BC fruit industry and ensuring a bright, sustainable future for generations of growers to come.
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BC Tree Fruits Launches Canadian Summer Staples Contest
With summer arriving here on the west coast, Canadians are out exploring this beautiful country we call home. Whether it’s loading the van for that summer road trip to see the family, packing up the boat and hitting your favourite lake, or grabbing your friends and heading out camping, Canadians of all ages are enjoying their favourite summer activities or, more appropriately, their “Canadian Summer Staples”. While these are all amazing Canadian Summer Staples, the number one Staple is Canadian grown cherries from the orchards of BC Tree Fruits Cooperative. Cherry season is here and with over 7.5 million pounds of cherries estimated for this season, there will be plenty of juicy and sweet cherries for all to enjoy during all their favourite Canadian Summer Staples. To celebrate your favourite Canadian Summer Staple, you now have the chance to have to win a Canadian Staple prize pack courtesy of BC Tree Fruits Cooperative. Starting today (July 8), BC Tree Fruits is giving western Canadians the chance to win a trip for two to a true Canadian Staple, the Canadian Football Championship in Calgary, Alberta this November. Head to summerstaples.ca, complete the form before August 4, 2019, and you and a friend could be off to the big game! “Canadian grown cherries from BC Tree Fruits are a true Canadian summer staple,” says Chris Pollock, Marketing Manager for BC Tree Fruits. “We are excited to hear from western Canadians about their favourite summer staples and how our grower’s cherries are enjoyed throughout the summer months. And what better way to celebrate your favourite summer staple then winning a trip to a true Canadian staple taking place in Calgary this year.” In order to maximize all cherries grown by the Cooperative, BC Tree Fruits Cider Company launched the fourth product under the Broken Ladder name this past spring with the new Rosé premium craft cider hitting the shelves. Available now across BC government and private liquor stores across BC, Rosé is fast becoming its own Canadian Summer Staple for many British Columbians. Visit summerstaples.ca now to enter the contest and for further details. No purchase necessary, contest closes August 4, 2019 at 11:59 PST.
Enter to WIN and Meet Canucks forward Bo Horvat!
BC Tree Fruits and Canucks forward Bo Horvat have partnered up and want to send you to Vancouver for a once in a lifetime hockey experience! Prize includes: 2 tickets to the Canucks game Feb 9th, 2019 1 night stay at the Sheraton Vancouver Wall Centre Autographed Memorabilia Meet and greet with Canucks forward Bo Horvat Dinner Vouchers Travel Vouchers All you have to do is head to the contest page for all the ways to enter! Contest closes January 20th, 2019 - please read the full contest rules for eligibility and more information. Good luck!
WHL & BC Tree Fruits Announce BC Tree Fruits Training Day contest for minor hockey teams
Calgary, Alta. – BC Tree Fruits is proud to partner with the Western Hockey League to present the BC Tree Fruits Training Day contest, providing one lucky minor hockey team in Western Canada with the opportunity to lace up their skates for a practice with their local WHL Club. Have you ever wanted to do stickhandling drills with the Kootenay ICE? Perhaps you want to learn to shoot with the pinpoint accuracy of the Lethbridge Hurricanes? Maybe you want to keep attackers at bay like the defence of the Vancouver Giants or you just want to turn aside pucks like your favourite Saskatoon Blades goaltender? Whatever your skillset, position or interest, you and your minor hockey team have the chance to practice your off-ice and on-ice skills with a WHL Club by entering to win the BC Tree Fruits Training Day contest. The contest remains open from Monday, October 15 through Sunday, December 16, with two simple steps to follow: Get your teammates together and take a picture enjoying some delicious BC Tree Fruits apples. Be sure to show your best apple face. Visit www.whl.ca/training-day and complete a simple form, upload your photo, and let us know why you and your minor hockey team want to train with a WHL team. There is no limit to the number of times a contestant may enter. To be considered valid, entries following a contestant’s first entry must come with a unique additional photo. The winning entry will be selected by random draw under the supervision of BC Tree Fruits and the WHL. There is no purchase necessary to enter or win. For complete rules and regulations, please visit www.whl.ca/training-day. About BC Tree Fruits Cooperative BC Tree Fruits Cooperative is comprised of over 430 local grower families who grow a variety of tree fruit commodities including apples, cherries, pears, peaches, nectarines, apricots, prunes, plums and grapes. BC Tree Fruits head office is located in Kelowna, BC. For more information: bctreefruits.com | facebook.com/bctree | twitter.com/bctreefruits About the Western Hockey League Regarded as the world’s finest development league for junior hockey players, the Western Hockey League (WHL) head office is based in Calgary, Alberta. The WHL consists of 22 member Clubs with 17 located in Western Canada and five in the U.S. Pacific Northwest. A member of the Canadian Hockey League, the WHL has been a leading supplier of talent for the National Hockey League for over 50 years. The WHL is also the leading provider of hockey scholarships with over 350 graduates each year receiving WHL Scholarships to pursue a post-secondary education of their choice. Each season, WHL players also form the nucleus of Canada’s National Junior Hockey Team.
BC Tree Fruits Kicks off Peach Season with Brand New Packing Line
As the calendar is set to turn to August, the anticipation of peach season in the sunny Okanagan Valley is not far behind. To help facilitate the demand of this juicy fan-favourite summer fruit, BC Tree Fruits is excited to unveil a brand new, state-of-the-art peach and apple packing production line in their Oliver packing facility. The installation of this multi-million dollar packing line was just completed and saw the first bins of fruit go across this past weekend. BC Tree Fruits continues to be a leader in the industry and the Valley and with the addition of this new line continues the trend of employment opportunities within the Cooperative, specifically in the south Okanagan region. The launch of this new packing line brings the Okanagan Valley, and more specifically the grower members of BC Tree Fruits Cooperative, the advantage of having some of the most advanced efficient grading technology in Canada. The new packing line will deliver accurate and consistent fruit quality to consumers across Western Canada and will support the expectation in the market of high quality, locally grown fruit from the growers of BC Tree Fruits. “We are excited to bring this technology to our grower members,” says Director of Operations Peter Hoffman. “This new packing line utilizes an optical sorter that has advanced machine-learning capabilities that revolutionizes the sorting process. The results will allow us to colour map, grade and defect sort fruit with increased accuracy, all with the focus of delivering consistent, high quality fruit to our consumers.” he launch of this new packing line, we maintain our commitment to reinvest in our industry and our growers with state-of-the-art technology,” says Stan Swales, Chief Executive Officer. “With this line comes the ability for us to continue to meet our consumer’s expectations of premium fruit whenever they see the BC Tree Fruits leaf.”The Oliver facility will handle the packing of all summer fruits for BC Tree Fruits Cooperative outside of cherries, which are also packed in the Kelowna facility. The new packing line will also handle apples starting in the fall.
Helicopters and BC's Cherry Industry
Cherries have been grown in Okanagan orchards for over 100 years. The industry has seen rapid expansion over the last fifteen years with the introduction of new varieties, expanding markets and the conversion of other orchards to cherry production. Cherries are a strong contributor to the local economy, earning BC over $80 million in exports alone last year. BC’s reputation for high quality produce allows local growers to compete effectively on the world stage. Cherries are a luscious fruit; but they are tender, and they are risky and expensive to produce. Apart from attacks by birds and insects, rain can ruin it all just as the fruit reaches the perfect maturity for picking. Rain pooling around the stem of the cherry, or beading on the fruit’s skin can be quickly absorbed into the cherry. When this happens the cherry’s flesh expands more quickly than the skin can stretch to accommodate it, and when the pressure is too great, the skin splits. Unfortunately, once the cherry has cracked, it is worthless for the fresh market. A small cost recovery might be found by selling the damaged cherries for juice, but the costs of picking and sorting the ruined cherries far exceeds such returns. If the damage exceeds 25% of the crop, it is not economical to pick the fruit, and the grower may be forced to walk away from his crop, leaving the fruit on the trees. Growers use an integrated approach to reduce rain damage, typically combining several methods to minimize the risk of fruit cracking: Rain-tolerance: Growers plant rain-tolerant varieties, mostly bred at the Agriculture and Agri-food Canada research Center in Summerland, BC. These cherries are not immune to rain damage, but they are more tolerant than the older varieties from thirty years ago. Later ripening: Many of the new Summerland varieties now grown also ripen later in August when the risk of rain is lower. Danger of crop loss is also mitigated by growing several varieties with different maturity dates to spread the risk over a longer season. Wax sprays: Growers watch the weather forecast, and if rain is predicted, they may apply a food-safe wax product that forms a slightly protective barrier that reduces potential damage. Row covers: Growers continue to experiment with retractable orchard covers, but these remain prohibitively expensive and create other problems for the cherry crop. Fans: During and after rain, growers use powerful fans on their tractors to help blow water off the trees. This is very effective, but it is slow, so not practical for large or multiple blocks. Helicopters: In the 1980s, growers pioneered the use of helicopters to dry the cherries and found that they are the quickest and most effective way to save the crop after rain. But helicopters are very expensive, costing over $1,000 per hour, so growers do not do this for fun. Helicopters can mean the difference between saving the entire year’s production and losing it all. How helicopters work to dry the cherry crop: After rain, the trees are soaked throughout. Flying a helicopter just above the treetops produces a downwash of air and turbulence which blows most of the rain water off the leaves and cherries. The turbulence rebounds from the ground providing side wash, blowing the trees dry on both sides. The heavier the helicopter, the wider the coverage, although too large a machine would do damage to the trees. A small helicopter must move more slowly and covers only a couple of rows at a time, taking longer to do the same area. It is important to understand that time is of the essence when drying a cherry crop after a rain storm. After a few hours, every minute additional ‘wet time’ increases the percentage of cracking in the fruit. Helicopters can cover an orchard quickly, removing this water before it can cause irreparable damage. After a rainstorm has moved through at night, the water should be removed from the cherries before the sun comes out and the temperatures start to rise. The warmer the temperature is, the higher the rate of cracking. Rising temperatures and ‘wet time’ are the reasons growers will employ helicopters early in the morning when it has rained overnight and will try to get the fruit blown off as soon as possible. And because despite the effectiveness of helicopters, they do not get the cherries bone dry, it may be necessary to follow up with tractor-mounted blowers. Unfortunately, Mother Nature can be fickle, and sometimes the grower has the frustrating experience of finally completing the drying of his or her crop, only to be hit with another rainstorm. In this case, the process starts again. Impact on our neighbours: Growers try to limit the impact on their neighbours from helicopter use as much as possible. The pilots that BC cherry growers hire abide by Transport Canada regulations limiting helicopter usage to a start time 30 minutes before sunup, and a finish time 30 minutes after sundown. They cannot fly through the night. In addition, they are subject to minimum height restrictions over residences, and choose to enter an agricultural property by the least-populated route. Larger growers sometimes use more than one helicopter to dry the cherries more quickly, and to minimize the duration of the nuisance to neighbours. Farmlands in the Okanagan Valley are protected as part of the Agricultural Land Reserve, and growers are protected in their ability to use normal farming practices, which includes the use of helicopters to dry cherries. Residents should be aware that growers don’t take this “Right to Farm” legislation lightly, and that the industry is continuing to do their best to be good neighbours. As residents of this community, growers understand that helicopters can be an annoyance. We share the desire for a peaceful rural environment, and dread summers of unusually high rainfall. None of us want our farming practices to have a negative effect on our neighbours, nor do we want to lose our own sleep as we fight to save our crops. But farming is our livelihood, and we thank our neighbours for their continued patience and understanding for the brief critical period of cherry harvest, and throughout the growing season. More information at: www.bccherry.com
BC Tree Fruits Anticipating Record Cherry Volumes for 2018
KELOWNA, BC – With the sunshine in the Okanagan Valley and summer on the horizon, the excitement is growing as the summer fruits from the orchards of BC Tree Fruits growers’ are near. A combination of ideal weather conditions through bloom and the post-bloom periods as well as new production coming on has resulted in an estimated 12 million pound cherry crop this season. Consumers will start seeing Okanagan cherries from the orchards of BC Tree Fruits in stores starting the end of June and with the anticipated record crop, there will be plenty of juicy and sweet cherries for all to enjoy over the warm summer months. The 12 million pounds of BC Tree Fruits cherries estimated for this season matches the estimate from last season – although the crop in 2017 came in short of the initial estimate at 10.1 million pounds due to weather challenges across the region. In addition to cherries, BC Tree Fruits is anticipating a very good peach, nectarine, prune, plum and table grape crop with volumes either slightly up or similar to last year. “Mother nature served our growing regions with ideal weather conditions through bloom into the post-bloom period, which has resulted in a lot of fruit on the trees,” says BC Tree Fruits Marketing Manager Chris Pollock. “Our growers are excited and prepared for great summer fruits crop this year with harvest starting end of June for cherries in the South, with the fruit hitting retail shelves very soon after.” The primary market for BC Tree Fruits summer fruits remains Western Canada. BC Tree Fruits also continues to export increased volumes of cherries to the United States and key export markets.
10 Big Game Apple Appetizers
Did you adopt a healthier approach to eating for your New Year's Resolution? If so, just because the Big Game - and all of the tempting snacks and appetizers that go along with it - is fast approaching that's no reason not to include healthy fruits into your celebrations. We've compiled a list of some delicious appetizer and snack options featuring apples that will score a touchdown with your guests this coming Sunday! Apple and Soft Cheese Platter Caramelized Onion, Apple and Creamy Cheddar Crostini Photo courtesy of kraftcanada.com Apple Pizzas Bacon Apple Cheddar Loaf Photo courtesy of foodnetwork.ca Apple and Bacon Stuffed Mushrooms Apple avocado salsa with honey-lime dressing Photo courtesy of diethood.com Ambrosia Appetizer Board Apple Cinnamon Bacon Bites Photo courtesy of sprinklesomefun.com Apple Chicken Quesadillas Apple Pie Burrito Photo courtesy of foodnetwork.ca Trying any of these recipes? Share them with us! Tag @bctreefruits in your photos and we may feature your creations. Happy February!