A Season of Transition

After the passing of its founder, Craig Evans in March 2023, Growing Opportunities Farm Community Co-op is in a season of transition.

The Co-op held its Annual General Meeting on July 22 and formally endorsed the transitional team of directors that has been in place since news of Craig’s terminal illness. The team is comprised of Jen Cody, Isabelle Morris, Ben Glassen and Heather Pritchard of Foodlands, who is helping the farming cooperative re-establish its footing and work towards financial self-sufficiency. Together, this group brings decades of expertise in farming operations, nutrition, farm produce marketing and land use. To govern, Growing Opportunities is utilizing the sociocracy model which uses consensus-based decision making, reflecting the co-op’s core value of inclusion and equality.

A strong farm management team is in place and the team exceeded the targets for its Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program, the Farm Gate Crate, offered for the first time this year as a pre-paid 12-week subscription. The first few crates have been distributed to rave reviews from customers.

However, as Growing Opportunities does not own the land it farms on, land precarity continues to be an issue the team is focused on addressing.

The good news is the team has a solid group of directors and volunteers who are very committed to the Growing Opportunities goal of inclusion in agriculture, and a strong community partner in the Nanaimo Association for Community Living. It’s a time of change and transition, but with the help of Foodlands, Growing Opportunities is well poised for the future, whatever it may bring.