Agrifood:
British Columbia has long been known for its reputation for its wide diversity of products. B.C’s reputation for high quality and high safety standards continue to draw importers from around the world. British Columbia produces more than 200 agriculture products and 100 seafood species. B.C’s agrifood sector comprises approximately 2800 small to medium sized businesses. It includes: dairy, beef, shellfish and poultry to products like beer and wine, caviar and pet food (alfalfa, grass seed, and hay) as well as non-edibles like flowers, cosmetics and textiles. B.C. also produces ethnic, organic and functional foods; sugar-confectionary and cocoa products; coast baked goods; food preparations for manufacturing and natural health products, sauces and soups.
As of 2017, British Columbia’s agrifood industry produced $14.2 billion in sales of agriculture, food and seafood products. B.C. exports $3.9 billion of agrifood and seafood products to more than 157 markets worldwide. In 2017, B.C’s top five exports were: Farmed Atlantic Salmon, food preparations for manufacturing, natural health products, baked goods, cereal products, blueberries and mushrooms.
Most British Columbia farms – 98 per cent are family owned and operated.
Some examples of manufacturers that make supplements here in B.C.
- Prairie Naturals- Prairie Naturals is a privately owned, family business headquartered in Coquitlam BC, Canada. Prairie Naturals creates, markets and distributes more than 100 nutritional supplements, natural hair and natural body care products. The Prairie Naturals brand is sold through hundreds of retail stores from coast to coast across Canada.
- Natural Factors- Located in Coquitlam B.C., Natural Factors is one of the largest manufacturers of nutritional products in North America with origins that go back to the 1950s. Natural Factors owns rare certified-organic farmland south of Armstrong BC called Factor Farms. Here, they grow high quality raw materials from high quality seed selection to the finished product. Natural Factors has close to 700,000 square feet of space across nine locations in North America. This includes housing offices, manufacturing and production facilities, laboratories, distribution centres, and warehouses. They now have a new US office in Monroe, Washington. Natural Factors have state of the art laboratories that test for purity, potency, and testing that can detect contaminates at a molecular level.
Health food made and sold here in B.C.
Raw health food is growing substantially based on their high nutritional value to the consumer. More GMO-free, vegan/plant based, gluten, sugar, dairy and allergen-free, organic foods are being sought after. What’s even more wonderful is that these new foods taste good! Emphasis is having the consumer to reconnect with what “real” food looks and tastes like without all the added salt, sugar, msg and other food additives/preservatives to enhance flavour and texture. BC holds 25% of 400 natural health food companies that exist here in Canada.
Here are a few wonderful BC-made products available:
- Rocket Foods- Based here in Duncan BC, Rocket Foods creates oatmeal cups and pouches in four different flavours. They are guaranteed allergy friendly, vegan, gluten free, sulphate free, preservative free and made without artificial coloring or flavourings.
Rocket Foods website: https://rocket-foods.com/
- Holy Crap- Holy Crap (cereal) is an acronym for cranberries-raisins-apple pie. Guaranteed gluten-free and vegan this cereal was manifested here in Sechelt on the beautiful Sunshine Coast.
~ Holy Crap website: https://holycrap.com/
- Foods Alive- based in Grindrod, BC these products by raw food gourmet chef Afke Zonderland are vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free and without added sugar. Afke has his raw food ingredients Dehydrated at 119F, raw food preserves enzymes known to assist in the digestive process. Discover their Krumbleeze cookies, high-protein Carrot Crisps and All Hail Kale chips!
~ Foods Alive website: http://www.foodsalive.okanaganrawsome.ca/
- The Vinegar Lady- Vancouver based, the Vinegar Lady line consists of six full bodied, gourmet fruit vinegars. The creator, Wanda Dixon even experimented with her red raspberry vinegar with oysters! Many high-profile chefs rave about Wanda’s vinegars. Recipes how to use these vinegars are on the Vinegar Lady’s website.
~ Vinegar Lady website: http://thevinegarlady.com/
Loving Foods~
The philosophy of loving foods is that at every intention, from planting seeds to the point of ingestion, food affects us. Loving foods advocates the use of all vegan raw-living organic foods. The theory is that every hand, machine, and tool that touches our foods adds to the intention being put into the food. Anyone who has eaten food made by an angry chef knows the difference between that and food made by someone you love. Foods prepared with proper intention will nourish the body far more than foods that go through a range of harsh experiences and then sit in a super market only to be microwaved and eaten. Loving foods believes in acquiring foods as close to the source as possible. Grow your own or buy them from your local farmer and try to grow sprouts. A loving foods diet does not include any animal or animal-based products, heavily refined products, pesticides and chemicals. Loving foods advocates the use of the four living food groups to create a balanced raw food diet. Loving foods also sees the value of exercise and right livelihood to create true balance, health, and happiness.
~ From “The Raw Foods Resource Guide”
References:
https://www.britishcolumbia.ca/
https://www.prairienaturals.ca/
Book: Natural Healing Wisdom & Know How by Amy Rost