Fraser Common Farm Cooperative

Posted on Thursday, 10 December 2020 under Supporting Farmers and Ranchers Featured Farmers

Fraser Common Farm Cooperative, a 20-acre property, has been cooperatively managed for nearly 40 years. The property is a unique mix of farmers, tradespeople, and families. The property is home to Glorious Organics, a vegetable farm that produces over 30 varieties of fresh food. Fraser Common integrates animals into their crop production, working at rotating their sheep when they can to replenish the land.

When Fraser Common Farm started, the group spent a great deal of time assessing their farm, considering what would do well in specific micro-climates. This would be their first of many climate change adaptation strategies. They believe that diverse cropping systems are good for climate resilience. They compost all of their waste, nothing other than the product for market leaves the property. That compost is then used to amend their sandy soil.

Farmers on the property are adopting alternative energy strategies for crop production, including using unheated poly houses to extend their growing season and implementing a solar panel to run their irrigation system. One of the farmers living on the property, David Catzel, is passionate about food security and climate-friendly farming. Catzel is the Director of the BC Seed Security Program at FarmFolk CityFolk, continually advocating for and working towards a more sustainable food system in BC.

In 2018, Fraser Common Farm received a grant to implement their solar panel for running their irrigation. Catzel explains how they received the funding, and how the system works. Watch the full video below.