It is one of the most agriculturally productive areas in Canada, with excellent soil and climate conditions for agriculture and it is the province’s most
concentrated farming region, having over 5500 farms covering an area of 88,405 ha.
Around 128,000 ha of land are protected as provincially designated agricultural land
reserve (ALR) in the Lower Mainland, which represents less than 3% of the total
provincial ALR. The ALR Act ensures that the best land suited to agriculture is not
developed or used for other purposes and, therefore, provides some guarantee that it is
available for food production for future generations [12].