March 8th is International Women’s Day (IWD). This year’s theme is Accelerate Action for Gender Equality.
Fiesta carries incredible products made by Canadian women entrepreneurs to put in your cart year-round.
Supporting Women Food Entrepreneurs
We know that women face unique challenges building and scaling food businesses. If we’re going to accelerate action for gender equality, we need to support our local women food entrepreneurs.
Christine Manning, former owner of Manning Canning and Manning Canning Kitchens, has seen these challenges firsthand.
Manning has worked one-on-one with women food entrepreneurs, helping them build the confidence and financial literacy they need to access funding and scale their food businesses.
Growing a food business requires outside financing. Yet, statistics show that women are:
- Less likely to apply for business loans (7% of women compared to 11% of men) and
- More likely to rely on personal savings or support from family and friends to grow their businesses. (source)
Buying from women-owned food businesses is a delicious way to accelerate a better, more equitable future.
Here are some incredible women-led brands you can buy at Fiesta Farms right now:
10 Women-Led Canadian Food Brands We ❤️
- SaltSpring Kitchen Co. (Salt Spring Island, BC) – Melanie Mulherin started making preserves as gifts for friends. Now she has a thriving business of small-batch, jams, preserves and hot sauces.
- Alchemy Pickle Company (Toronto, ON) – Rebekka Hutton is the pickle maker and owner of Alchemy Pickle Company. Alchemy makes naturally fermented, probiotic-rich pickles, kimchi, and kombucha that encourages people to learn more about what they put onto their plate.
- Blume (Vancouver, BC) – Karen Danudjaja founded Blume to create functional, plant-based latte blends that make wellness easy and delicious.
- Lazy Daisy’s Biscuits (Toronto, ON) – Dawn Chapman, inspired by her grandmother’s home cooking, built her business around making the perfect buttery biscuit from scratch. Her easy to bake-at-home biscuits and bakery are rooted in bringing the spirit of her family farm to the city.
- Stush Patties (Toronto, ON) – Founder Opal Rowe grew up eating her mother’s Jamaican patties and set out to create a gourmet, all-natural version with bold flavors and high-quality ingredients.
- Arvinda’s (Burlington, ON) – Arvinda and Preena Chauhan, a mother-and-daughter duo, produce spice blends that make authentic Indian cooking more accessible at home.
- Nut-ilicious (Toronto, ON) – Founded by nutritionist and mom Anne Ho, Nut-ilicious offers delicious, nutrient-dense snacks designed for busy families.
- Honey’s Ice Cream (Toronto, ON) –Ashley Wittig’s business was built on a drive to create the perfect plant based ice cream. She succeeded. Honey’s is named after her one-eyed potcake pup.
- Jennifer’s Original (Thunder Bay, ON) – Jennifer 100% gluten-free frozen rice breads are truly beloved by people with gluten allergies and sensitivities.
- Baker and Scone (Toronto, ON) – Sandra Katsiou, the owner and creative force behind Toronto’s Baker and Scone, is dedicated to perfecting the art of scone-making. Her St. Clair West Bakery has garnered significant attention, and her 40 flavours of scones are the best in the city.