Bill M 246: Small Farms Act

This bill primarily affects small-scale farmers and farming cooperatives in British Columbia who operate on Agricultural Land Reserve land. If you run a farm bringing in less than $750,000 a year and you process, pack, or store products on-site — like making jams, cheese, or cured meats — the rules change so that at least 75% of what you process must be from your own farm (up from 50%), but you gain the ability to pool with neighbouring farms through a cooperative. If you host farm tours, U-pick events, farm dinners, or other agri-tourism activities, these are now explicitly protected as permitted farm uses, though overnight accommodation is capped at 3 sleeping units (down from 10) for stays of no more than 120 days. You'll also need to keep records proving you qualify as a small farm and make them available to the minister or the Agricultural Land Commission. Solo operators and small family farms stand to benefit most from the clearer agri-tourism protections, while cooperatives of multiple small farms gain new flexibility for shared processing and marketing.