Victoria-based DeeBee’s Organics, which makes healthy frozen snacks for the food retail sector, is the winner of the newcomer category in this year’s British Columbia Export Awards.
Founded by research scientist Dr. Dionne Laslo-Baker and her husband, Dr. Stephen Baker, TeaPops are gluten- and dairy-free, vegan and kosher. The company expanded into the U.S. market last year.
“We are in several states — Florida, Indiana, New York and Michigan to name a few,” Laslo-Baker said. The product will go into more than 200 stores this fall in California, Arizona and Texas, she said.
DeeBee’s took home the New Exporter of the Year award this week at a ceremony in Vancouver. The awards are presented by the province and the B.C. division of Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters.
Polaris Minerals won in the natural resources category. The company has partnered with the ‘Namgis First Nation to mine sand and gravel on northeast Vancouver Island. The aggregates are shipped to the U.S. for large-scale construction projects.
Two other Island firms were finalists.
Quester Tangent, in Central Saanich, was a finalist in the advancing technology and innovation category for its monitoring systems for the global rail transit industry.
Axys Technologies of Sidney was a finalist in the manufactured-products category. For four decades, the firm has specialized in designing, manufacturing and installing remote environmental monitoring systems, which are sold around the world.
