Regenerative farming, Local food

Hiring: Farm team members
Farm: Salish Sea Regenerative Farm Society

Location: Sechelt, Sunshine Coast BC
Housing: Must be located or able to relocate to the Sunshine Coast

Salish Seas Regenerative Farm

The Salish Seas Regenerative Farm (SRF) is a vegetable farm located on shíshálh lands.

Its goal is to contribute to the health and abundance of the food system on the Sunshine Coast while simultaneously nurturing underutilized lands.

The SRF is partnered with people with vast knowledge in agriculture, composting, engineering, finance, and project management. In 2022, SRF began revitalizing the local food system on a 6-acre BC Hydro lease adjacent to the Sechelt Hospital. Though initially regarded as non-arable land, the application of high-quality compost improved soil health to support sustainable organic cropping. We aim to demonstrate, teach and inspire other communities to utilize their organic wastes to reclaim lands and create sustainable and resilient food systems.

The Farm Operation

Since our first growing season in 2023, SRF has been successful in growing an abundance of high-quality crops, including potatoes, carrots, strawberries, snap peas, tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, and squash. All produce was sold to local markets, including the Sechelt Nation, Sechelt Hospital, and the One Straw Society. All crop residues were composted at Salish Soils. For 2025, we will run a more structured operation with serious goals for growth. We plan to grow our relationships with existing markets while expanding to new markets as well. This will require weekly harvest targets of an expanded range of staple crops. There is also the opportunity for trialling new crops for future full-scale production.

Farm Worker Position(s)

Reporting to the Farm Manager and Site Foreman, the farm worker(s) are responsible for general farm work which includes all aspects of the farm operation. We are hiring for multiple positions for the farm and hope to establish roles with varying levels of responsibility based on experience. This is a great opportunity to learn practical farming skills, build leadership experience as well as participate and learn more about community-based food security initiatives. The farm positions are seasonal with the opportunity to be extended with additions to the cropping systems, such as greenhouse and post-harvest storage management. The positions range in length and will be determined based on your availability and farm staffing requirements.

• Start date: Between March 31st and May 12th, 2025
• End date: Between August 28th and October 3rd, 2025 (with possibility for extension)
• Hours: The farm team should expect to work 8-hour days with a dynamic schedule to account for seasonality and weather.

Compensation:

Compensation will be based on experience and responsibility. The pay range is from $18 -$25/hour. Of course, fresh vegetables will be available to you as well! 4% pay in lieu of vacation.

Core Tasks:

• Soil preparation
• Plant propagation
• Seeding
• Weeding
• Transplanting
• Plant maintenance
• Harvesting
• Integrated pest management (IPM)
• Washing, grading, and packing orders

Additional Tasks:

• Maintain overall site cleanliness and maintenance (including DIY construction tasks)
• Produce delivery
• Volunteer coordination as needed
• Education and outreach with farm visitors

SRF Values

Learning

You will learn and build upon your knowledge of soil health, organic and regenerative cropping methods, and local food systems. You will be learning in an active operation and under the guidance of experienced farming professionals. That said, we recognize learning is always a two-way street and greatly value your feedback and input. We aim to establish weekly and daily pre-scheduled tasks but also acknowledge that farming is an iterative and interactive setting that can be very dynamic. Sometimes, we must pivot and/or react to unforeseen challenges.

Safety

Safety is a key perspective on the farm, and we strive to cultivate a workplace that puts safety and bodily health at the forefront of our operation. Farming can be very hard on the body, our operation aims for optimum ergonomics at all times. We greatly value your feedback on how we can constantly improve on safety and comfort.

• Attend safety meetings if scheduled. Independently following up on safety meeting notes, signing that they have read and understand what was discussed.
• Promote, execute, and adhere to the safety program and encourage all co-workers to adopt safety as a culture.
• Work in a safe, responsible manner to avoid injury or endangerment of others.

Teamwork:

This one is one of the most important to ensure we all have the best time possible on the farm!

• Participate as a vital member and contribute towards the success of the team.
• Promote a safe and healthy mental and physical environment for all to learn and grow. Kindness and compassion make the world go round!
• Embrace a team approach by maintaining respectful and clear communication with all co-workers and leaders.

Job Requirements or Assets:

An ideal candidate would have the following attributes:

• Hardworking, respectful, and engaged in their surroundings
• Committed to teamwork, safety, and strong, open communication
• Physically fit and able to work outdoors (in all weather), and perform tasks like bending, kneeling, lifting etc.
• Be living or able to move to the Sunshine Coast and have reliable transportation to and from work
• Experience in farming or other fast-paced industries (e.g., restaurants, landscaping) is a big plus. A strong interest in learning is all that is required
• Passionate about small-scale farming and bringing their best to the job
• Legally eligible to work in Canada.

To apply:

Please send a brief cover letter and your CV to jack@uplandconsulting.ca . In the email, please include your work availability timeframe (May-August, student) or extended season. Please provide at least 2 references. Please mention you saw this at FoodWork.ca.