Ferries and Farming

      Living on an island is a little different from living on the mainland, primarily because of our reliance on the ferry system. A few years ago I visited Glen Alwin Farm in the Comox Valley. Their location gives them the opportunity to sell their beef and lamb at both the Courtenay and the Campbell River Farmers Markets.         

     When I asked where they process their livestock, they pointed and told me “About 5 minutes down the road”. I could see the meat shop’s sign just across the highway. They wouldn’t even need to load a truck…just walk the cows and sheep down there.

      Contrast that to most Gulf Island farms. Ferries to bring supplies in. Ferries to take our products off island. Sometimes ferries to take them off island to process, then back to our island to sell. It makes even more sense to have a local food economy in the Gulf Islands. Keep our growing, processing and marketing as local as possible.
     It is more than convenience that is at stake.  There is animal welfare to consider, as well as safety.  A big cattle truck came to our island to pick up cattle from three different farms which were to be shipped to Vancouver.  The ferry arrived late, so the driver had to rush to the first farm where several people worked up a sweat loading the uncooperative creatures.  Then the second farm to load some more.  Then our farm to load the last, and a dash back to the ferry to catch the 11:45.  The truck was just under the thirty minutes for priority loading and the ferry employee in the booth was not going to budge on the rule.  The driver was told that the next ferry would be at 3:10.  I followed the truck and pleaded with the ferry employees at the dock to please allow the truck to load because there were two bulls on the truck separated by just a metal gate.  I pointed at the truck, which was rocking back and forth from the bulls fighting.  I told them that this was a safety issue for the animals, and the ferry wasn't even in dock yet.  Fortunately, the ferry employee allowed the truck to load on the 11:45.  
     It isn't always this way.  Sometimes a truck of livestock will be asked to go in a separate lane to be loaded last, and sometimes the truck is forgotten or not enough space is left.  If connections are missed a truck may need to stay overnight at a ferry terminal with no food, water or fresh bedding for the stock.

      Last fall I took some lambs to Saturna Island to be processed – I caught an evening ferry, unloaded the sheep in the dark at Campbell Farm and then slept over. The next day we slaughtered, then back to Pender. Then a return trip the following week with another stay-over to pick up the meat. Not a simple five minute drive down the road, unless you have the good fortune to live on Saturna. Soon Salt Spring will have an operating abattoir as well, which will have the added feature of being mobile so that perhaps the abattoir can eventually come to the farms, instead of animals being transported.

      Many Gulf Island farmers with livestock have to do the dance with the ferry monster, which would involve the ferry trip and anywhere from one to two hours driving. Add in time gathering the stock and loading them so that you still have at least thirty minutes before the scheduled sailing to assure your place on the ferry. Right?

      Well, that depends. You see, in 2005 BC Ferries decided to do away with the “30 minute rule” for livestock on the major routes for the ferries. Instead, they require a reservation to assure the boarding of the livestock on the preferred sailing. “This can be a challenge, because it is an established fact that travelling with animals when they are not accustomed to is is stressful to the animals” says Cynthia Tupholme, a Salt Spring sheep producer who has had her experiences in dealing with the ferry system.

      “Try cancelling a reservation outside regular business hours when there is no one to pick up the phone at the BC Ferries office. Try making it to a reserved sailing time when travelling a long distance with a load of sheep, there is no rushing when travelling with livestock and there can be accidents on the road or road construction or any number of unforeseeable obstacles beyond the drivers control which delay the best laid plans to arrive at that reserved sailing time an hour before the sailing.”

      According to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency “Every person responsible for transporting animals in Canada must ensure that the entire transportation process including loading, transit and unloading - does not cause injury or undue suffering to the animals. It is illegal to cause undue suffering to an animal at any point in the transportation process.”

      Tupholme and other farmers believe that BC Ferries has a responsibility to provide a transit service that will prevent undue suffering of all livestock. This was the main reason why in the past they gave assured loading to livestock of all kinds, and not just to live seafood. Extreme temperatures and weather conditions, and the stress of travelling itself are animal welfare issues. The BC Farm Animal Care Council is concerned as well and has requested that producers send their experiences to BCFACC, so that they can be presented to BC Ferries.

      Another sheep producer wrote in the recent BC Sheep N'Ewes, that one way around the stress of travelling with livestock is to book more than one reservation each way to assure that you will get on a ferry, and cancel the reservation you do not need. Margaret Sampson, who lives in Surrey and only occasionally travels by ferry with her livestock, did point out that she was shocked at the cost of ferry travel, and how it has increased through the years. This is especially noted by those who use trailers because the cost per foot has doubled. In 2009, the fare for Margaret and her sheep in truck and trailer 35' total was $92.25. In 2010, the fare had increased 48% to $136.65, one way. This year she paid $145.75.

      For Gulf Island residents, the Experience cards replacing the ticket books have created some unpleasant situations. Some have found that it is difficult, if not impossible, to transfer funds from card to card, and the minimum amount to put on the card changes as ferry rates increase. Currently it is $90 for car and driver. And it is different from a book of tickets where you can clearly see how many tickets are left, but you might not remember how much money was left on your card.

      As for Cynthia Tupholme, the frustrations of island farming and living have become too much. She is currently looking for a place in the Fraser Valley.

HST Helps BC Farmers Reduce Costs

Now that we have had the time to try out the HST system, I have to admit that I like it. I am not a big fan of taxation but can see some definite advantages for farmers and small businesses.

Before HST, farmers had to deal with two tax agencies. All farmers who had farm tax status which allows for a property tax reduction, were declared "bona fide" farmers by the provincial government. These farmers could have a PST exemption on certain farm inputs, and this exemption was usually declared at the point of purchase Quite simple, but you had to either have your farm card on you, or have your farm business and farm number on file with the seller. Some farmers would also be federally registered, with business numbers that would allow them to file GST. Since food products are tax exempt and no PST or GST is charged to the buyer, the end result would be a benefit to the farmer who would file the Input Tax Credits and receive a refund from the federal government. The list of allowable input items was different for each agency, with the federal government allowing a greater number of tax exempt items.

After HST, the whole procedure was greatly simplified and the farmer is able to claim input tax credits on more items. Much, much, better.




For small businesses, before HST there were two agencies to deal with. The provincial PST system required collected and collectable provincial taxes from sales to be in government hands each month, three weeks after the end of the month. The government didn't care if you couldn't collect from all your customers by that time - they wanted their cut, and if you were late or short, watch out. Businesses would register with suppliers so that they could be exempted from the PST on their inputs. Not everything would be charged PST - some sales items like services, trucking, most food, etc. were not charged PST. PST was at 7% in BC for the last several years.

The federal government created GST several years ago - I think it was actually meant to be temporary - and the filing periods varied with the size of the business. The GST system allowed for input tax credits to be claimed so that you could reduce the amount of taxes paid to the government. Everything had the GST attached to it. GST had been going down - from 7, to 6, and then 5%.

Actually, the new HST system is just like the GST system, except now the PST is added on so the HST is 12%. If the efficiencies to government are as big as government claims, they should be reducing the provincial portion of the HST just like the GST was reduced.

As someone who deals with some bookeeping, I see an advantage to the small business. Having one agency to deal with saves time and reduces one headache. I know that for businesses that did not previously have to charge PST it can reduce net sales. People may eat out less, not appreciate the apparent increased trucking costs, or cost to sell their house, or other services affected. Hopefully these wrinkles will smooth out.

What some people don't appreciate is that small businesses collect taxes from their customers and hand the taxes over to the government.  Small business works for the government in this way, and although it sounds simple when stated like that, it involves getting the customers to pay on time so that you can pay the government, filling out paperwork, filing the paperwork on time, dealing with audits, and keeping up with the rules and regulations.  For businesses that charge both PST and GST,  the HST system is much better.

I can see that one downside for local farmers will be to those who sell directly to restaurants. The restaurants will still have the benefit of major inputs (food) that do not have any HST attached. However, the restaurants will also have the downside of charging HST on meal, and may try to have farmers drop their prices, or may bypass local food suppliers altogether and go with a cheaper source of food.

As farmers, we are also consumers, so there is that part of the puzzle to ponder. The months we have had the HST in operation has given us an idea of its impact on our daily lives. For me, I don't spend a lot on junk food or restaurant meals. The government website and the easy to read report have been helpful to me, and I recommend everyone to give it a look and decide for yourself.