In 2016, Steve Hope and his partners revived a dilapidated processing facility in Chilliwack and opened Fraser Valley Hazelnuts, now processing and distributing most of the B.C. crop, from Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island farms.
“We also have 38 acres planted here, with 20 starting to produce last year,” he adds. “We processed 190,000 pounds of hazelnuts in 2022, definitely down from the height of things, but we’re hoping to see yields doubling every year.”