This is the second story in a six-part series chronicling farming on the South Island ahead of the 150th anniversary of the Saanich Fair. We talked to farmers both old and young, and asked them what has changed over the years and what makes them who they are today.

Check back each morning and afternoon for new stories between Aug. 29-31.

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The landscape of farming is changing, resulting in a busier and sometimes more competitive marketplace, says one Metchosin farmer.

Robin Tunnicliffe has been in the organic farming community since she started her apprenticeship more than 25 years ago. Coming from a tight knit farming community, one in which farmers learned about best farming practices at work parties and met others with similar goals and interests at local farmersB次元官网网址� markets.

But in recent years, things have changed.

B次元官网网址淭oday weB次元官网网址檙e really in silos; thereB次元官网网址檚 a lot of social media and a lot of ways that people access information that doesnB次元官网网址檛 lead to a cohesive community any more,B次元官网网址� said Tunnicliffe, general manager of Sea Bluff Farm on Wootton Road in Metchosin.

B次元官网网址淚 donB次元官网网址檛 know a lot of the youngsters, I donB次元官网网址檛 see them at the farmers markets. WeB次元官网网址檙e all kind of doing our own thing independently of each other and itB次元官网网址檚 my hope in the future that we can be more cohesive.B次元官网网址�

Working at the farm, the growing season has also changed drastically over the years. Using all types of techniques and technology from a 1950s cub tractor to hill potatoes, weeding and seeding, Sea Bluff Farm is now growing fresh produce all year-round.

B次元官网网址淔armers are really having to plow it to the fence, really get all the successions in that we can. WeB次元官网网址檙e farming 365 days a year and 52 weeks of harvest,B次元官网网址� Tunnicliffe said. B次元官网网址淲e are trying to maximize the seasonal shoulders, doing everything we can even just to break even, replace infrastructure and pay staff.B次元官网网址�

Produce, which varies depending on the season, is being sold through more channels too. Instead of simply going to one farmersB次元官网网址� market, Sea Bluff sells its produce at numerous markets, through a food box program run via Saanich Organics, and operates a farm stand twice a week.

B次元官网网址淚 think we have to work a lot harder at marketing than our predecessors. Even since I started farming, it used to be that we would go to the Moss Street Market and that would be the only one in town and you could sell all your produce. But now thereB次元官网网址檚 a little market in every neighbourhood. So weB次元官网网址檙e ending up going to five different markets in order to sell our produce, which is really taxing,B次元官网网址� Tunnicliffe said.

But in the face of an industry that is constantly in flux and can be hard for young farmers to break into, Tunnicliffe believes there is a growing desire from residents who want to know where their food is coming from.

B次元官网网址淐ustomers are becoming way more educated about the food, about the problems,B次元官网网址� she said. B次元官网网址淧eople are learning more about their food system and demanding that chemicals not be used, that slave labour not be used.B次元官网网址�

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