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Pursuing Value-Added Opportunities

Primary Sector

The value of farm production rose by 4.9% last year to $75 million. While growth occurred in several areas, the increase was mainly attributable to chicken (+14.5%) and floriculture/nursery (+35%) sales. Most notable was the growth in chicken production despite the September 1997 removal of a provincial program which had paid a production subsidy to chicken producers. Progress in the farming business has been steady. On an annual basis, the value of farm production has risen consistently in 24 of the last 26 years.

Reflecting the rising popularity of gardening and related activities, the fastest growing sector of the industry in recent years has been floriculture and nursery. This sector includes greenhouses, sod and nursery producers. The value of production more than doubled from $4 million in 1988 to almost $9 million in 1998.

Food Processing and Product Development

The development of value-added food and beverage products from both locally produced and imported inputs has been a key strategy for growing the industry. While the bulk of secondary manufacturing has been breads and biscuits, processed milk, poultry and other livestock products, and beverages, the industry has witnessed in recent years the proliferation of smaller specialty product manufacturers. With a strong focus on niche markets, the products of these manufacturers have included specialty jams and wines made from local fruits such as blueberries and partridgeberries; chocolates; and beverages made from iceberg water, which have proven popular among both residents and tourists. In addition, companies are exporting more products to other parts of Canada and the United States, and are expanding to markets overseas.

Product Development - Christmas Wreaths

The production of Christmas wreaths from balsam fir offers yet another opportunity for industry diversification and value-added in the Province. The production and export of wreaths throughout the rest of Atlantic Canada is a multi-million dollar industry, with most of the product going into the United States. Presently, local wreath production is in the pilot stage, involving strategic partnerships between local entrepreneurs and established producers in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. Interest and production in this industry is expected to grow in the near future.

Regulations and policies concerning this new line of business are currently being drafted. From a resource perspective, wreath production offers an opportunity to maximize the potential of softwood trees since the material required for wreath manufacturing (i.e., tree tips) can, with precision, be harvested with minimal impact on the production of wood fibre.

Product Development - Cranberries

The Province's agrifoods industry is moving quickly to capitalize on the upward trend in North American cranberry consumption. A growing preference for cranberry products, partly due to positive medical research on the benefits of cranberry juice, have led to higher prices to growers and a shortage of product at times. The Province has an abundance of wild fruit that belong to the cranberry family and is utilizing some of its vast peatlands to establish four commercial cultivated cranberry sites, two of which will soon be ready for planting. In the interest of preventing the importation of cranberry pests, no cranberry vines will be imported into the Province. Instead, seven varieties of cranberries are being propagated at the Department of Forest Resources and Agrifoods tree nursery at Wooddale.