A B.C. group is looking to connect would-be farmers to farmland – including property right here in the North Okanagan.

Here in Vernon, the Young Agrarians are currently working to attach young farmers to the new agricultural park announced by the Regional District of North Okanagan in 2024.

The 137-acre property is aiming to be a community resource for farming and agriculture. With the help of Young Agrarians, the RDNO is taking applications to fill eight quarter-acre plots and eight one-acre plots in the park.

“Our goal is really to de-risk new farm startups and to de-risk land-sharing relationships. Having opportunities like the RDNO Park are so important to that,” said Pascale Schittecatte-Ciric with the Young Agrarians.

Young Agrarians use a plan called the B.C. Land Matching Program, which is aimed at helping negotiations between farmers and land owners.

“We introduce folks to one another, connecting people where there's a match between what a property has to offer and what a farmer needs,” said Schittecatte-Ciric

Schittecatte-Ciric says many hopeful farmers struggle due to the lack of land available.

“If you don't have a place to farm, you can't farm. Then there’s a lot of other complimentary issues, such as lack of access to working capital, lack of access to education and knowledge transfer.”

In a statement to Castanet, the RDNO said the park's intention is to “improve access to land for new and expanding farmers, connect Greater Vernon’s existing network of parks and natural spaces, conserve natural habitats and wildlife, and successfully integrate agriculture and education together.”

“It gives [farmers] different scales that they can work at in order to get going at a pace and a size that's appropriate to them,” said Schittecatte-Ciric about the advantages of these types of properties.

The RDNO already has already issued licences for the agricultural park, with more moving through the process in hopes of beginning to farm in the spring.