Canada's First Truffle Farm
Our History - Since 1999
The Truffle Farm began in 1999, when the plan was coming into it’s own. The theory that Black Perigord Truffles could be farmed in Canada was un-tested at the time.
In 1999, Canadian Agriculture had not considered truffle production yet, and it took multiple years of testing to inoculate multiple species of trees and plants to see what could host the Black Perigord Truffles.
Back in 1996-1999, our parents Grant and Betty set their minds to trying testing and proving truffle growth on Vancouver Island. They started testing trees to produce Truffles. They were the first to prove we can grow Truffles in Canada, and today we continue to develop and expand our plantations.
The Truffle Farm took great time and care to test many tree species to identify and prove which trees would host the Black Perigord Truffle. There was many years of testing all trees to prove that the Hazelnut and Garry Oak established the symbiotic relationship.
Since Black Perigord Truffles grow at the roots of our Garry Oak and Hazelnut trees, we needed help hunting the truffles. This was when Grant and Betty decided to look into the best truffle hunting dogs available.
They found Lagotto Romagnolo to be the best truffle hunting dogs available. They have been trained since the 1800s specifically to hunt truffles and look for that specific scent. Before the 1800s, Lagotto Romagnolo were a versatile hunting companion dog and would go out and guard the land and hunt with their family for hours.
Now today, we continue the tradition of the Lagotto Romagnolo breed and continue to train our Lagotto Romagnolo puppies and dogs to be able to hunt the scent of these rare and decadent truffles.
A photo of the founding family of The Truffle Farm, taken 2007
More Than Truffles
We are the full Truffle experience
The Truffle Farm is located in the beautiful Parksville of Vancouver Island, British Columbia in Canada.
The Truffle Farm was first started in 1999 by our parents Grant & Betty when they retired from their regular jobs with a plan and a dream to start a beautiful farm on Vancouver Island.
They had already farmed for quite some years, and served many animals in distress helping them along the way.
Grant and Betty Duckett are pioneers of Canadian Trufficulture and farming of Truffles, as well as revivers of the ancient Lagotto Romagnolo dog breed which we continue along their side. They are the first known farmers to ever successfully farm and cultivate Truffles from an inoculated tree. They attempted with many tree species, and eventually found success with Garry Oak and Hazelnut trees.
Shortly after, they imported their first Lagotto Romagnolo puppy from Italy. They trained and nurtured this breed into the breed that it is today and our Lagotto Romagnolo dogs are fine companions within our family.
Now along the side of their parents Grant and Betty; Virginia and Peter Brietzke take care of the many farming tasks of The Truffle Farm.
With the increasing interest in new adventures and experiences all over the world, and especially on Vancouver Island – Peter & Virginia have a vision to open up the experience of Canadian Trufficulture to the public with The Truffle Farm.
Starting with a fresh new look and feel, this farm does not lack the history or experience. They are dog and animal experts, care givers, and plant experts. This wealth of knowledge and experience is something they want to share with the world, and open up some new tourist experiences within The Truffle Farm for tourists looking for a new experiences on Vancouver Island of Canada.
The Truffle Farm is building some beautiful accommodations in the works, and plan to provide new workshops and classes to help people learn about their endeavors with Trufficulture and Truffle Farming.
Some future classes involve puppy training classes, Trufficulture tours and information learning sessions, Truffle culinary classes, art classes, and more.
That paired with their farm fresh produce and meat with the setting of their beautiful farm and the mountains as a back drop, it makes for a beautiful Vancouver Island touring experience here in Parksville, Vancouver Island.
The Truffle Farm is only 10 minutes away from the world famous Rathtrevor Provincial Park and Beach, 20 minutes from English Man River Falls and has world class golfing all around. It’s a close thing to do around Parksville even if you call them before hand to drop by and pick up some farm products.
You can stop by The Truffle Farm as a stop on your adventure to Tofino if you’re going surfing, or Comox Valley if you’re going snowboarding.
When these public experiences will be open at the moment is unknown, so keep checking back into the website for updates.
For now, if you would like to experience The Truffle Farm for yourself or take a piece home for yourself, please inquire by contacting us.
Thank-you, we hope to see you soon!
Sincerely,
Truffle Dogs
Great with children, special needs, outdoors, hunting for game and of course Truffles. The Lagotto Romagnolo is a rare & ancient truffle, retrieval breed that is the grandparents to many other breeds.
The Truffle Farm is the 1st known breeder of of the working truffle hunting dog breed Lagotto Romagnolo of Canada. We have puppies from time to time and welcome you to be on our litter list to wait for your own Lagotto Romagnolo puppy to join your family.
Black Perigord Truffles
Our production of Black Perigord Truffles are used to inoculate more seedlings we grow in house. We sell our seedlings to give others the chance to produce their own truffles. We use our extra truffles for culinary. Value adding truffle products will one day be available when the time permits.
Truffle Trees
25 Years ago; our parents Grant and Betty Duckett set their minds to trying testing and proving truffle growth on Vancouver Island. They were the first in Canada to prove that this could be done.
The Truffle Farm was the first to test many trees to identify and prove which trees would host the Black Perigord Truffle. With many years of testing various tree species to prove that the Hazelnut and Garry Oak established the symbiotic relationship.
Katahdin Sheep
We have various other farmed meat and poultry products such as sheep meat, chicken meat, turkey meat, eggs and more.
We also have flowers that we collect and arrange into bouquets as well as seasonal fruits when season permits.
Our History
Canada's First Truffle Farm & Lagotto Romagnolo Breeders
1999
The Truffle Farm Begins
For Betty & Grant's retirement, they decided to move to the stunning & beautiful Parksville, Vancouver Island with a plan to cultivate a Truffle Farm.
2000
Lagotto Romagnolo Puppy Imported from Italy
In the early 2000s, Betty & Grant Duckett imported their first, and Canada's first Lagotto Romagnolo puppy to the Truffle Farm at Parksville, Vancouver Island. When they imported the Lagotto dog, they were not even recognized by the Canadian Kennel Club yet.
2003
First Truffle Inoculum Imported
With extensive research & trial and error, our parents Betty and Grant Duckett imported their first Black Perigord Truffle inoculum. They tried multiple plant species to find a Truffle host, and eventually found success with Garry Oak and Hazelnut trees. They were the first known Canadian farmers to successfully cultivate Truffles in Canada.
2007
First Known Black Perigord Truffle Harvested in Canada
The Truffle Farm (The Truffle Portion of our farm was and is known as Duckett Truffieres) are Canada’s first producer of Black Perigord Truffle (2007). With only knowledge of which trees host truffle in Europe, agricultural experience, hard work, patience and tenacity, Ducketts have now spent many years incubating, inoculating and growing truffle-hosting trees. Trufficulture is a new dimension in Canadian agricultural diversification. There is no way to know what effect small variations in microclimate, location and trufficulture methods may have in Canada without years of scientific study.
2012
Lagotto Romagnolo Informational Presentation at CKC/CDJA Educational Conference 2012
“The Canadian Kennel Club and the Judges Association asked us to present Lagotto Romagnolo to the Educational Conference in Vancouver. Our dogs were awesome, and they performed spectacularly as a strong working Lagotto Romagnolo would. They showed themselves so beautifully, it was unbelievable.” - Betty Duckett on Shaw TV Feature
2016 & 2017
1st Place Westminster 2016 & 2017 Lagotto Romagnolo Showing
Anna Dal Mulino Rosso – out of Gleska kennel, paired with Angelus Mei, whelped a wonderful litter in 2017 (both lineages won Westminster 2016 + 2017 Lagotto Romagnolo Showing).
Who We Are
We are a family run farm
Peter Brietzke
The Truffle Farm OwnerThe one who holds it all together. Peter is the owner and rock of all that happens for our farm and life. His great accomplishment is his family and shows through all that he does. Peter loves to make others happy, this is his true joy.
Virginia Brietzke
The Truffle Farm OwnerVirginia Brietzke truffle farm coordinator through organizing and planning. I pride myself on providing joy and peace to all aspects of life. I love being part of a team and pulling through a well executed plan that makes a difference for a quality life. A proud recipient of Canada's first woman to receive a chairman's award for best customer service and sales.
Garrett Brietzke
Care TakerLoves to connect people. His joy is seeing farm growth and raising baby animals. Steady and consistent is his mantra for life. He also loves to give back to his community in any way he can.
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Our Location
Located at 420 Lowrys RD, Parksville, B.C. - Canada