Show Manager Jim Shepard says the 2014 show is already shaping up to be bigger and better than before.

Always a show highlight, the three-day trade show features all types of farm equipment of interest to farmers and others who produce high-quality local food. A new tent will be set up at the south end of Hall 2 to expand exhibit space.

The trade show is open from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. daily. Admission is $12 for the general public, $10 for seniors and 4-H members, and free for children under 14.

Agri-Energy & Waste Management Forum
The 2014 Agri-Energy & Waste Management Forum will be held on Jan. 31 from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

The forum will focus on anaerobic digestion updates and research, co-product development, and nutrient and waste management opportunities. Go to the Pacific Agriculture website for more information and to register.

Building farm business success
A program on business success is set to take shape from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Jan. 31 in the Terralink Room at the Tradex Centre.

The morning will include presentations on sustainability by Brett Wills, director, Green Enterprise Movement in Toronto, and agriculture’s cultural revolution by Maureen Geddes from geddesglobal.ca in Chatham, Ontario.

It will conclude with a look at agriculture’s future by keynote presenter Dr. Jay Lehr, the science director of the Heartland Institute, a 29-year-old national non-profit research organization dedicated to finding and promoting ideas that empower people.

From Chicago, Illinois, Lehr combines five decades of expertise and experience in agricultural economics, agronomy, environmental science and business administration with the most contagious enthusiasm for the future of the farm.

This presentation will address the key drivers of agri-business and the impact of advancing technologies on the local and global economy.

B.C. Dairy Expo
The 46th Annual B.C. Dairy Expo will take place on Jan. 30 from 10 a.m. to 12:10 p.m.

The keynote speaker will be Dr. Robert Milligan from St. Paul, Minnesota. Milligan will deliver two major presentations of wide interest to dairy producers. His first talk will centre on how to motivate your workforce; his second presentation will focus on how to prepare for change.

Between Milligan’s presentations, David Janssens, DIREC chairman, and Trevor Hargreaves, director of producer relations and communications, B.C. Dairy Association, will introduce a new dairy association: Dairy Industry Research and Education Committee (DIREC).

For more information on the dairy expo, contact Tom Droppo or call (604) 302-1335.

B.C. Dairy Expo farm tours
Dairy producers are also invited to participate in the annual self-guided farm tours on Jan. 29, which will start at 9 a.m. and run through to 4 p.m.

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Again this year, eight farms will be showcasing their innovative new dairy technology or building design. Owners, building contractors and equipment suppliers will be on hand to answer questions.

Lunch will be provided at Derksen Dairy, Legendairy Farms and the UBC Dairy Education and Research Centre from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Disposable plastic boots will be provided at each farm. Read on for more information on each tour location.

For more information on the tours, contact John Luymes, farm structures engineer, B.C. Ministry of Agriculture, or call (604) 556-3144.

For more information on the Pacific Agriculture Show, click here to view the B.C. Dairy Expo Farm Tours brochure and click here to view B.C Dairy Expo Semianar or call (604) 291-1553.  PD

—From Pacific Agriculture Show news releases and B.C. Dairy Expo and Farm Tour brochures

Vulnaho Dairy Farm

Vulnaho Dairy Farm
Jonathan & Riva Driesen
Abbotsford
9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

  •   Two DeLaval voluntary milking stations (VMS) installed in remodeled holding area and parlour; VMS options include Herd Navigator system, iodine back flush and sort gates
  •  JOZ automated hoof sprayer at VMS exits
  •  Second-generation JOZ-Tech robotic manure scraper incorporated to remove manure from slatted floors
  •  Y2K freestalls with Pasture Mats and Premium Pads
  •  DariTech BeddingMaster equipment installed by Pacific Dairy Centre

Prime Acres Ltd.

Prime Acres Ltd.
Casey Pruim and Family
Abbotsford
9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

  • Manure separation system incorporates recent European technology in creating green bedding which has sawdust removed; dry bedding end-product is generated at a temperature of approximately 65°C or 150°F to inactivate pathogens

  • Set-up designed and installed by Meinen Brothers with minimal changes to existing slatted floor; homogenized manure is collected from storage and then processed

  •  System includes Sepcom 65 press, the only press of its kind with a centre drain as well as an external drain

  • First use of above-ground Sydex positive displacement worm delivery pump in Fraser Valley to deliver product to separator


Legendary Farm

Legendairy Farm
Doug, Don and Tyler Rennie
Abbotsford
9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

  •   New three-row, drive-through barn with two DeLaval boluntary milking stations (VMS) with Herd Navigator milking cow management system and iodine back flush

  •  Direct milk flow to bulk tank without collection vat and milk sorting in a separate room

  •  Y2K stalls, Gel Mats

  • 16-inch Jamesway manure pump, and automated flush flume with JOZ scraper system; JOZ auto hoof sprayer

  • Efficient LED lighting incorporated in cattle traffic and resting areas


D & R Wall Ltd

D & R Wall Ltd.
Dave and Rachel Wall and family
Abbotsford
9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

  •   New drive-through barn with 130 freestalls, pens for freshening cows and calf pens

  •  Two Lely Astronaut 4 robotic milking systems, with heat detection, buffer tank, sort gates and inline omatic cell count tester.


Derdsen Dairy Ltd

Derksen Dairy Ltd.
Steve & Gail Derksen
Chilliwack
9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

  •  One Lely A4 Manager robot for herd size of 55 milking cows; equipment includes ruminant detection, weigh floors, M4Use separation buckets and dual sort gates

  • First-ever back-of-barn project for West Coast Robotics

  • Lely Cosmix computer feeder

  • DCC waterbeds; easy-fix meter mats for cow alley

  • Manure scrapers built and designed by Meinen Brothers, locally manufactured rope-driven units which incorporate plastic greaseable corner wheels, scrapers are folding type with option of scraping straight or at 5 percent angle


PJV Farms Ltd

PJV Farms Ltd.
Peter & Janet Vink, Andrew & Jessica Vink, David Vink
Chilliwack
10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

  • New 118-foot by 188-foot barn addition for milking cows and dry cows

  • New barn is attached to existing barn with double-six Westfalia I 90 parlour expandable to double-10, supplied and installed by Pacific Dairy Centre

  • New barn has partial manure storage under the floors to accommodate existing manure channels

  • Existing barn was remodeled for maternity pens and youngstock


UBC Dairy Education

UBC Dairy Education & Research Centre
Nelson Dinn, manager
Agassiz
9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

  • First DariTech installation in Canada for a manure-scraped barn, which uses a sand cannon system to separate manure from sand for sand re-use

  • System also incorporates a DariTech DT360 manure separator with an air bag-controlled roller press to extract as much fibre out of the manure as possible, allowing the resulting liquid to be reused in the and cannon phase


North Bank Dairy Farms Ltd

North Bank Dairy Farms Ltd.
Rick & Teresa Dekker, Richie & Ashley Dekker, and Doug & Ashley Dekker
Dewdney
10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

  •  New barn with a double-15 DeLaval stainless steel Endurance milking parlour with Herd Navigator system

  •  Y2K head-to-head freestalls measuring 17 feet in length with foam mats
  •  Efficient LED lighting installed in cattle traffic and resting areas

  •  Cyclone fans and Roll-O-Matic curtains for ventilation; system includes five-foot curtain at roof peak

  • Closed-loop BioLynk flush system including tanks and valves installed by Pacific Dairy Centre  PD