British Columbia flood impacts livestock, poultry farms
In a recent newscast, British Columbia (BC) Minister of Agriculture Lana Popham provided an update on the impact of the massive flooding in Western Canada.
Following an announcement that said that 640,000 farm animals had perished in the floods, stories of hope began to emerge. As flood waters abate, a better picture of mortalities begins to emerge, Popham said in a live-streamed press conference.
Last week, Harvey Sasaki, chair of the BC Chicken Marketing Board, noted that there are 61 poultry farms in the evacuation zone. “Amazingly, 97% of the laying chickens survived,” said Popham.
Despite worries that turkey shortages were possible, Popham assured BC residents that only 2% of annual provincial production has been lost.
“I think this bodes well as we head towards some holiday meals together,” she said.
BC’s dairy sector was equally fortunate, as 98% of cows in the evacuated region have survived the flood. In one case, a dairy farmer spent 48 hours feeding his cows while they stood neck-deep in water.
“This is really due to farmers working together and communities making sure that they had those farmers backs,” said Popham, pointing to the Abbotshford Rugby Association and a local hockey team.
According to CTV news, the total number of livestock lost includes 628,000 poultry, 12,000 hogs and 420 dairy cows. Additionally, 110 beehives were destroyed.
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