Fonds - British Columbia Fruit Growers' Association fonds

Speaking to the Vancouver Board of Trade and to members of the Vancouver City Council in November 1888, Alex McD. Allan of the Fruit Growers Association of Ontario urged his audience to "one and all work, speak, write and think for the interests of horticulture." His speech set in motion a Vancouver Board of Trade program to bring horticulturists in the province together to exchange ideas and knowledge in order to raise standards in growing and marketing. A meeting was held February 1st 1889 with a total of 93 persons in attendance. All present were from the Lower Mainland, Lytton and Vancouver Island areas with the exception of Alfred Postill who was from the Okanagan. The constitution and bylaws were modeled on those of the Montreal Horticultural Society and the Fruit Growers Association of the Province of Quebec. The stated objective of the newly formed British Columbia Fruit Growers Association was "to encourage the cultivation of fruits, vegetables and flowers and pursuits pertaining to horticulture, the promotion of bee culture, holding of exhibitions and collecting information regarding the different varieties of fruit best adapted for cultivation in this Province." The association focused on the problems of marketing, packaging and education. In the early years of the fruit industry in B.C., the chief centres for growing were Vancouver Island, the Fraser Valley, and Lytton. By 1904, the Okanagan Valley had undertaken a number of irrigation projects and had became the leading fruit growing region in the province. In the years leading up to 1910, the BCFGA suffered from declining membership due to increased competition from Farmers' Institutes. Additional problems arose in the 1920s as a result of noncooperation between the numerous independent shippers in B.C. In a speech to the members of the BCFGA, Aaron Shapiro, an organizer of the citrus growers of California, stressed the importance of organizing for the purpose of distribution. By 1923, 80% of the growers in B.C. had signed up. As the largest shipping company in the province, the BCFGA carried the greatest share of the burden of distributing the crops. Expenses rose as cold storage facilities had to be provided. Increasing competition from independent producers resulted in the formation of marketing boards in the late 1920s. By 1933, a lack of support from growers and the withdrawal of provincial funding had bankrupted the BCFGA. A small group of Vernon growers put the association together again and the BCFGA led the way in obtaining both federal and provincial marketing acts to stabilize prices. Trade restrictions banning importation of fruit from the U.S. created excellent domestic markets for B.C. growers. However, severe winters in the late 1940s devastated many orchards, and the BCFGA was forced to distribute a quarter of a million dollars of government funding for tree replacement. Improvements to B.C. highways in the 1950s and the 1960s made it easier to ship fruit to market and an increase in tourism bolstered local sales. Unfortunately, many orchards were being replaced by housing. In response, the BCFGA launched a campaign to emphasize the economic importance of farmers to their communities. A combination of high operating costs, low returns and lack of government assistance led to demands for reform of the BCFGA policies. In 1973, the Land Commission Act was passed and the BCFGA worked with the provincial government to rectify the inadequacies of agriculture. Between 1974 and 1989, the BCFGA focused on distribution and how to defuse rivalries between the various agricultural organizations and packinghouses. Challenges in the 1970s and 1980s included changes in government policies, low crop returns, further erosion of farmland and competition from cheap imports of fruit. The unifying thread through the entire history of the BCFGA is the belief that by working together fruit growers will achieve better results than by each struggling alone. When the BCFGA was founded, many of the members were backyard orchardists scattered throughout the province. Presently, the BCFGA represents commercial orchardists in a small area of B.C. and is the main grower organization for safety net programs, regulation lobbying, and grower education.