Food innovations recognized at Edmonton Startup Week

The co-founder of 7 Summits Snacks says she is both honoured and vindicated by a People's Choice Award win at Edmonton Startup Week. "It's truly an honour, especially because this is such a tech-focused group of startups at a tech-focused event," Kristyn Carriere told Taproot during Launch Party at Edmonton Unlimited on Oct. 8. "To have a food innovation company in Edmonton be the people's choice winner truly pleases my heart, and it shows the power of our community." On LinkedIn, she added, "Innovation doesn't only live in code. Sometimes it lives in a chocolate."

Carriere's athlete-focused brand was one of many innovative food businesses to pitch at a Startup Week session on Oct. 7. Lisa Bélanger described founding Flat Out Feasts after she almost died of starvation on a cross-continent hike despite eating regularly; she created freeze-dried, low-carb meals that provide more direct nutrition and can now be found at stores such as Mountain Equipment Company. Maria Chau of Zwick's Pretzels talked about the challenges of keeping up with growing demand, having closed her storefront in 2023 but expanding her reach to the skies — Zwick's is now available on regional airlines. The other pitches came from Gummy Nutrition Lab, which stocks gummies at Wal-Mart; DON'YA Ukraine's Kitchen; which was featured on Dragon's Den; Token Mocktails, the next step for Token Bitters; Bevada, a Calgary-area mocktail brand available in Edmonton; BRiiNE, a sparkling beverage that maximizes hydration; 529 Hard Protein Seltzer, a fitness-conscious drink launching soon; Super Amigos Mexican Street Food, which is opening soon at 9935 69 Avenue NW; Compass Chocolates, a chocolatier inspired by global flavours; Blush Cake Bar, which makes customizable cakes at rapid speed; and figorar, a digital loyalty card platform.

The pitchers also heard advice from veterans of food entrepreneurship during a panel hosted by Peter Keith from the eHUB Entrepreneurship Centre. The food entrepreneur behind Meuwly's sat down with Jacqueline Jacek of JACEK Chocolate Couture and Greg Zeschuk of Blind Enthusiasm to share stumbles and successes. Their advice included tidbits such as not to devalue your product with markdowns or compromises in quality. They also stressed that you don't need to make a product for everyone, with Keith saying you should decide if you want to be the cheapest or the best. "You can't be both," he told the audience.