the chronicle herald g1 nnova scotia agriculture:ova ... · and they taste fantastic. as soon as...

Saturday, June 28, 2014 • The Chronicle Herald G1

It may look at first glance like ablueberry, but the haskap berry issomething exceptional according toNova Scotia-based producer, LiamTayler.

“Haskap berries have three timesas many antioxidants as high-bushblueberries and more calcium thanan apple,” Tayler says. “They work wonderfully as jams,

jellies and juices or as a tea ingredi-ent. And they taste fantastic. As

soon as people try them, they’rehooked.”While most Canadians have prob-

ably never heard of a haskap, theberries have been popular in Japanand Siberia for centuries. Tayler is the commercial director

at LaHave Natural Farms in Block-house, the largest organic producerof haskaps in Canada. “They grow really well in Nova

Scotia,” he says. “If you look at amap of the world and look at thelatitude of northern Japan where

they grow wild, we’re almost onthe same latitude. They love ourclimate.” Along with producing 40 acres of

berries, LaHave sells haskap plants

While most Canadians have probably never heard of a haskap, the berries have been popular in Japan and Siberia for centuries. Haskap berries, grown at LaHave Natural Farms in Blockhouse (thelargest organic producer of haskaps in Canada), have three times as many antioxidants as high-bush blueberries and more calcium than an apple. LAHAVE NATURAL FARMS

Local farmers producing new productsTOM MASON

Continued on G2

NOVA SCOTIA FEDERATION OF AGRICULTUREwww.nsfa-fane.ca902-893-2293

/NSFAMeetYourFarmer

Twitter @NSFA

/NSFAFANE

A competitive and sustainable future for the farming community in Nova Scotia.

• NSFA supports farm health and safety through Farm Safety Nova Scotia• NSFA is proud to deliver the Environmental Farm Plan Programg

Check out www.meetyourfarmer.ca/

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SAVE THE DATEOpen Farm Day is Sunday,

September 21, 2014

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The Voice for Nova Scotia Farmers since 1895

Nova Scotia Agriculture:Nova Scotia Agriculture:A Continuous A Continuous EvolutionEvolution

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G2 The Chronicle Herald • Saturday, June 28, 2014

to other growers and produces abrand of value added productsincluding haskap relishes, chut-neys, ice cream and a juice productthat’s already garnered internation-al awards. At the same time, they are also

building awareness for a newproduct with huge potential. “Our biggest challenge right now

is to inform the public that this is agreat product,” says Tayler.It might not be such a hard sell

after all. The global marketplacehas touched all sectors of society inrecent years, and none more sothan the food industry. Consumers have gotten used to

seeing exotic plantain, dragon fruit

and avocados on produce shelvesalong with fresh strawberries andasparagus year round. The competition is putting pres-

sure on local farmers to come upwith new products and new waysto complete.In Grand Mira North in Cape

Breton, an entrepreneur and farm-er named Ron Muise has begunproducing a line of artisanalsheep’s milk cheeses using his ownsheep — creating a product that’sthe first of its kind in the province. Unlike other milk, sheep’s milk

can be frozen before being used tomake cheese, a property thatmakes it easy to ship and store.And at Perennia, Nova Scotia’s

new agribusiness incubation facil-ity in Bible Hill, horticulturalistViliam Zvalo is working withseveral local growers to produce

sweet potatoes, traditionally atropical crop that’s considereddifficult to grow in our climate. His techniques include using

black plastic to raise the temperat-ure of the soil.Hops are another of the

province’s latest cash crops. Unlikethe haskap, hops have been grow-ing wild in Nova Scotia for centur-ies, ever since the plant was firstimported here from Europe by thefirst Acadian settlers. It took a burgeoning microbrew-

ery industry in the province and agrowing “local source” movementto revive interest in them.Hops are a member of the can-

nabis family and like their moremaligned cousins they grow tall,thick-stalked plants — up to16-feet high in most cases.“They are a perennial so you

don’t have to replant them everyyear,” says Alan Bailey, a hopsgrower in Hants County. “Actu-ally, the plants we’re growing nowwill probably be around longerthan you and I.”Bailey and his wife Brenda re-

cently opened their own micro-brewery, the Meander River Farmand Brewery in Ashdale, but iron-ically they aren’t using their ownhops in their product yet. The crop is harvested in the fall

and must be dried and stored overthe winter to make beer. It’s cheaper for the Baileys to buy

the hops they need from otherproducers.“It doesn’t make sense right now

to invest in expensive dryingequipment,” he says.Bailey would like to solve that

problem and one way to do itwould be for hops producers towork together to develop a centralprocessing facility. It’s an ideawho’s time has come. “Theoretically, hops should grow

well in Nova Scotia,” he says. “Wehave the potential to become amajor North American producer.”

At Perennia Innovation Centre, Nova Scotia’s new agribusiness incubation facility in Bible Hill, horticulturalist Viliam Zvalo is working with several local growers to produce sweet potatoes,traditionally a tropical crop that’s considered difficult to grow in our climate. 123RF

Hops are another of the province’s latest cash crops. Hops have been growing wild in Nova Scotia for centuries, eversince the plant was first imported here from Europe by the first Acadian settlers. It took a burgeoning microbreweryindustry and a growing “local source” movement to revive interest in them here. 123RF

In Grand Mira North in Cape Breton, entrepreneur and farmer Ron Muise hasbegun producing a line of artisanal sheep’s milk cheeses using his own sheep— creating a product that’s the first of its kind in the province. 123RF

Continued from G1

New farm products




The cows are in charge at Vissers Farm nearStewiacke. Or maybe it’s the robots? In any case, the days when human hands

were involved with the daily task of milkingare just about over, thanks to a new techno-logy recently installed by the Vissers family. The technology uses cleverly-designed

robots to milk 150 cows several times everyday. Cows enter a stall that contains a feedstation where they stand over a robot. The robots, similar to ones that have been

used in the auto industry for years, identifyeach cow via a transponder, determine whenshe was last milked and her position in thestall, and then gently hook her up to a vacu-um milker. “It’s like the cows are visiting a bank ma-

chine,” says John Vissers, who grew up onthe dairy farm and has owned and operated itfor more than 30 years. “They get a nicemeal and, in return, we get milk. Everybody’shappy.”The robotic milk machines have been com-

mercially available since the 1990s, but itwasn’t until Vissers’ son and nephew tookover day-to-day operations of the farm thatthe family decided to make the switch. “They wanted to spend less time around the

barn and more time working on other as-pects of running the farm,” he says. The system was expensive up front, requir-

ing major barn renovations and a hefty cashoutlay for computers and robotic equipment. “It was definitely a major investment for us

but we think it will pay off over the longterm.”The robotic milking system is just the be-

ginning for the Vissers. Nova Scotia dairyfarmers are also beginning to use thetransponder systems mounted on the neck-bands of cows to monitor variables like howmuch each cow chews its cud — an indicatorof health and well-being. They are also installing compostable bed-

ding in free stalls to keep cows clean andcomfortable and even back-scratchingdevices to help them with pesky itches. “If cows are happy and relaxed they are

going to produce more milk,” says Vissers.“That’s good for our business.”Farmers like Vissers are no strangers to

technological advancements. Agriculture haslong been one of the most complex anddiverse businesses on the planet, and farmerstend to be more tech savvy than most. A modern farmer needs to call on a huge

arsenal of skills to survive: They must bemeteorologists, risk managers, product de-velopment specialists, process engineers,marketers and accountants, along with being

knowledgeable about the hundreds of minutedetails that go with the daily operation of afarm. They also must deal with changing times.In Nova Scotia, farmers are leading the way

in the development of technologies such asgreen energy wind turbine and solar wallsystems. At Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada facil-

ity in Truro, a researcher named Erin Smithhas developed a new dedicated weatherwebsite to help Atlantic Canadian farmers

deal with the vagaries of climate chance.For the Vissers family, robot milking tech-

nology is already having a revolutionaryeffect on operations. “It’s completely changed how cows are

handled in the barn,” says Vissers. “Becausethey can come into these stalls as many timesas they want whenever they want, they getmilked more frequently. They are even usingthem at three in the morning. It’s better fortheir health. They’re a lot quieter, morerelaxed and content.”

Robots one of the new technologies helping farmersTOM MASON

The milking robots used at Vissers Farm near Stewiacke, similar to ones that have been used in the auto industry for years, identify each cow via atransponder, determine when she was last milked and her position in the stall, and then gently hook her up to a vacuum milker. CONTRIBUTED

Please slow down as you approach agricultural machinery on the road.

Creating a culture of health and safety where every decision on Nova Scotia Farms begins with safety. Farm Safety Nova Scotia supports its membership; the members of the Nova Scotia Federation of Agriculture, through• Advocacy• Awareness• Training & Education

S A F E F A R M I N G • S A F E F A M I L I E S • S A F E E M P L O Y E E S

www.farmsafetyns.ca | (902)893-2293 | [email protected]

SLOW MOVING VEHICLE SIGNSSLOW MOVING VEHICLE SIGNS ARE DISPLAYED ON EQUIPMENT ARE DISPLAYED ON EQUIPMENT

TRAVELING LESS THAN 40KM/HR.TRAVELING LESS THAN 40KM/HR.




Wine may be the Annapolis Val-ley’s newest product but vintnerHanspeter Stutz is finding profitfrom one of its oldest crops —apples. Along with his award-winning

New York Muscats, Seyval Blancs,L’Acadie Blancs and VidalIcewines, the owner of Grand PréWinery and the Domaine deGrand Pré label has also had greatsuccess with Pomme d’Or, adessert wine that uses Spy, Ida Redand McIntosh apples for its com-plex caramel and baked apple fla-vour and golden russets for itsdistinctive colour. He has even developed a line of

alcoholic cider products includingthe latest offering — called StutzPremium Craft Cider — to com-pete head to head with the lightbeer and cooler markets.Today, Stutz is developing even

more apple-based products tocompete with other sectors of thealcoholic beverage market, includ-ing liqueurs. He’s doing it with the help of the

Perennia Innovation Centre — a25,000-square-foot facility in BibleHill that exists to support thedevelopment and commercializa-tion of value-added agriculturalproducts in Nova Scotia. Currently, Perennia is working

with local food companies andfarmers to develop more than 50home-grown products — helpingthem work through problems thatrange from how to freeze dry gour-met dog food to improving theshelf life of a popular farmers’market pasta sauce in order to sellit to large grocery stores.Richard Ablett is a food scientist

and Perennia’s chief science direct-or. He says Nova Scotia’s newagribusiness leaders — people like

Hanspeter Stutz — are the stars ofindustry; the creative minds whowill lead the next generation offarmers in Nova Scotia. “Hanspeter is a visionary,” he says.

“He’s an innovative entrepreneur

who understands exactly what theagricultural industry in Nova Sco-tia needs if it’s going to advance tothe next level.” The Perennia Centre is a new idea

for Nova Scotia, according to

Ablett. In addition to providing ateam of experts to help producersand processors develop newproducts, the organization alsoprovides food-safety testing andprimary production and incubation

space to fledgling companies withnew agribusiness ideas. “The province has done a good

job developing the Life Sciences

Perennia helping agribusinesses develop new productsTOM MASON

Perennia fruiting walls in bloom. PERENNIA

Continued on G5

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industry and other technologybusinesses through incubators likeDalhousie and Innovacorp,” hesays, “but we’ve never had a busi-ness incubator that’s focused on theagricultural industry before.”The main goal is to help compan-

ies minimize risk. Developing newvalue-added agri-products is agame loaded with risks at the frontend. The cash outlay can be huge —

new machinery must be purchased,processes must be developed andmarkets must be tapped, with noguarantee that the product will sell.If farmers are going to survive in

Nova Scotia they need to find waysto start utilizing the byproducts offarming, according to Ablett. One way is by making use of the

parts of the crop that are tradition-ally thrown away. Perennia is working with a local

cauliflower producer who sells togrocery stores and discards a signi-ficant part of his crop because theheads are the wrong shape. “We’re helping him develop new

products to use that part of thecrop,” he says. Another innovative project in-

volves using blueberry leaves tomake a tea packed with healthynutraceuticals — a product that hasbig potential in the Chinese mar-ket. Blueberry leaves contain as many

antioxidants as the berries them-selves, and are now simply mowndown by harvesters at the end ofthe season.“We have to develop new value

streams for our agricultural produ-cers and we have to do it urgently,”says Ablett. “Food exports in Nova Scotia have

dropped 20 per cent in the last 20years. We can’t let that continue tohappen to our industry. We need toreverse that trend.”

In addition to providing a team of experts to help producers and processors develop new products, PerenniaInnovation Centre also provides food-safety testing and primary production and incubation space to fledglingcompanies with new agribusiness ideas. PERENNIA

Perennia Innovation CentreContinued from G4

Pruning is the second highest costto apple growers behind harvestinglabour. Perennia has been working with

local apple growers to develop newmechanical pruning techniques tohelp reduce overhead costs tofarms. Perennia horticulturist Chris

Duyvelshoff is working with agrower co-operator in the Anna-polis Valley to test the suitability ofusing a new pruning system de-veloped in Europe on high-densityplanted orchards in Nova Scotia. Known as a “fruiting wall” the

system uses a mechanical pruner toshape the trees into a narrow hedge— a process that also makes handharvesting more efficient, andcould ensure more uniform fruitcolour, quality and size because thesmall leaf canopy allows more sunto reach the fruit.“Mechanical pruning of fruiting

walls offers potential for labourinput savings while still producinga premium-quality fruit for themarket,” says Duyvelshoff.One mechanical pruner has been

purchased for the three-year pro-ject to test the impact on the trees,the overall pruning cost reductionto the producer, the yield and fruitquality.

New pruning systemmay decrease costsfor apple producers

Perennia fruiting walls. PERENNIA

TOM MASON




No farmer wants too much wateron their farm land.Except for the Purdy family.In fact, 200 acres of their farm

land is on the bottom of the ocean.Charles (Class of ’71) and Nancy

Purdy, with the help of theirdaughter Rachel, own and operateBay Enterprises, an oyster farm inMalagash. Charles took over the family farm

management from his grandfatherin 1962 and, in 1996, restarted theoyster farming that the Purdyancestors had been involved insince 1868.The Purdy family’s agricultural

farm started in 1783 with both landand sea farming. They currentlyonly farm the sea but still ownmuch of the land.The Purdy operation is one of the

few in Eastern Canada. Inspectedto sell almost anywhere in theworld, they sell their oysters locallyin Nova Scotia as well as ship tosome parts of Quebec, Ontario andthe U.S.A.For Charles, there’s nothing else

he would rather be doing thanworking on his farm. He gives agreat deal of credit to DalhousieUniversity’s Faculty of Agriculture(formerly Nova Scotia AgriculturalCollege) for helping him keep hisfamily farming operation alive forso many years.“I graduated from the NSAC in

’69,” Charles explains, “Then againin ’71. I had so much fun at thatschool, I had to go back!”To date, Bay Enterprises supplies

Dalhousie University’s Faculty ofAgriculture with some of its shell-fish to use in the AquacultureCentre, a leading centre inaquaculture research. Charles willalso be attending this year’s annual

Community Open House(www.dal.ca/agopenhouse) todemonstrate oyster shucking.“I’m so glad that I am able to give

back to the school,” Charles smiles.“That place taught me a lot.”Bay Enterprises is an oyster hatch-

ery and a packaging facility, inspec-ted by the Canadian Food Inspec-tion Agency. They raise oysters from larvae,

producing their own algae to feed

the larvae. They are fed and mon-itored in the hatchery and once theoysters are mature enough, theyare placed in the bay. There, they feed off the ocean for

about four to five years until theyare mature enough to harvest. Theoysters are harvested using bothmanual and mechanical methods. The mechanized machine used to

harvest the oysters is environment-ally friendly; something that’s very

important to the Purdy family.For Charles Purdy, farming with

his family is also very important.Started by his great-grandfather,the Purdy farm has been inCharles’ family for three genera-tions and will move into the fourthgeneration. His daughter, Rachel, is preparing

to take over the farm in the nearfuture.“On a family farm, you know

everyone and every animal,”Charles says. “You know everypersonality and, since you’re fam-ily, you have no choice but to makethings work.”Charles and Nancy Purdy take

pride in their operation. Havingkept it in the family for so long,they are glad to see Rachel taking itover. For the Purdy’s, there is only one

way to farm — with your family!

Inspected to sell almost anywhere in the world, Bay Enterprises in Malagash sells its oysters locally in Nova Scotia and ships to some parts of Quebec, Ontarioand the U.S.A. DALHOUSIE UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS

There’s only one way to farm — with your family!EMMA GELDART

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