Local food producer Tracy Lydiatt, owner of Great Bear Enterprises, has created a gluten-free, vegan, organic cookie product.

With $9,347 of funding from the Province’s Buy Local Program, Tracy is working to satisfy hunger, one Great Bear Paleo Bite at a time.

Great Bear Enterprises is partnering with local grocery store chain, Thrifty Foods, to promote the healthy snack in store with sampling and weekly advertising in the store’s flyer. The company is also launching a social media campaign and reaching out to new target audiences with a vehicle wrap to market on the go.

Great Bear Bites were developed in 2008 when Tracy’s passion for Crossfit led her to the paleo diet, which avoids grains and dairy. Originally created for her fellow Crossfitters, in 2013 the grain free, vegan and free of wheat-soy-dairy and nuts paleo snack was released in stores to reach a larger audience.

Tracy was also featured as a BC Job Maker for the BC Jobs Plan: http://engage.gov.bc.ca/bcjobsplan/job-makers/great-bear-paleo-bites-for-the-grizzly-within/

The Buy Local program has received $6 million in B.C. government funding since 2012 to increase sales of locally grown and processed agrifood and seafood products within the province.

Building the local market for B.C. foods is a key commitment of government's Agrifoods Strategy, a component of the BC Jobs Plan, to lead the agrifoods sector growth into a $14-billion-a-year industry by 2017.

The provincial government's Buy Local program is administered by the Investment Agriculture Foundation of British Columbia. Applications are available at: http://iafbc.ca/funding-opportunities/buy-local/

Quotes:

Boundary-Similkameen MLA Linda Larson on behalf of Minister of Agriculture Norm Letnick –

“The Buy Local program is proud to support local businesses like Great Bear Enterprises who give British Columbians the option to buy locally produced food. It’s great to see a local rising star achieve success in such a competitive market.”

Tracy Lydiatt, owner, Great Bear Enterprises –

“Great Bear Enterprises has grown from a small, locally owned operation into a successful business. With the support of the Buy Local program, Great Bear Bites are making a name for themselves in the agrifoods industry.”

Learn More:

Great Bear Paleo Bites: http://greatbearbites.com/

B.C. Buy Local program: http://www.gov.bc.ca/agri/buylocal.html