The government of British Columbia will be funding $450,000 to the building of a beef packing plant in Prince George, according to a news release on June 2. The plant will be the largest in the province.
“I don’t think it’s bad, I mean it gives us one more option,” said Pete Bonter, president of the South Cariboo Cattlemen’s Association (SCCA). “The trouble that we have right now is that we have too few of those outlets and if we want to export our product in say farm gate sales even to other provinces we have to have federally inspected plants.”
The nearest plant to the South Cariboo would be in Alberta.
“We just don’t have the product to finish on a large scale here in B.C. In Alberta, there are feedlot alleys right in the middle of all the feed and so what happens is they have cheap transportation of feed to these animals. We don’t have that option. I think the majority of our animals are probably still going to go east but it definitely opens a window to other opportunity and added value to our province. It’s got to be a win-win,” said Bonter.
Cariboo-Chilcotin MLA Donna Barnett, who has pushed for a mobile abattoir for the area in the past, said she is pleased with the announcement.
A plant could accommodate approximately 50 to 200 thousand head (cattle) annually, said Barnett, so while Alberta’s plants handle thousands of cattle daily, “a plant could be built sufficient enough for cattle producers in B.C.”
“Producers throughout the province, who produce small scale for local meat in many areas, still need a safe and acceptable method of slaughtering where there are no facilities,” she said.
“There are classes of licenses, C and D, that some throughout the province have which support locally grown meat.”
Barnett said she and the all-party select standing committee she sits on will be in Williams Lake on Tuesday, June 12, from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m., to gather feedback on the slaughtering issue.
The plant would ideally create 80 full-time jobs by 2020 when it becomes fully operational. An additional 620 spin-off jobs will be created.
Lana Popham, Minister of agriculture said in the press release, she hopes the project has the potential to ensure B.C. cattle are bred, raised and finished in the province and further supplying retailers, suppliers, restaurants and consumers with quality beef. She added the project could cause an economic boost to rural B.C.
The project is now looking for partnerships to organize and build the plant, where the funding will go to help develop an industry-led co-operative business model.
Project leaders will be looking at the lessons of a similar co-op in Ontario’s pork industry to learn what can be successful. The next phase to take place after the plan development would be getting funds approval and then the construction of the plant. The goal is to begin the construction in 2019-2020.
“We recognize that there will be other considerations before we start this facility. We need to look at establishing a finishing process and increasing feeding capacity. There is a lot of work ahead of us but this is an exciting first step in realizing that vision,” said Kevin Boon, general manager of the BC Cattlemen’s Association.
