Two first prizes for Quebec innovations at SIAL Canada

EMMANUEL MARTINEZ | PUBLISHED ON APRIL 29, 2025

Quebec SMEs won the first two innovation prizes on Wednesday at the Canadian International Food Show (SIAL Canada) in Toronto.

Oliméga, known under the brand Signé Caméline, won first place for a buttery-flavored camelina oil, while Brasserie San-O Sake finished second with its amazake cocoa spread.

Their innovations stood out among the 170 applications from 13 countries.

Three other Quebec companies, Epurée for its mashed potatoes with duck fat and steak spices, Fontaine Santé with its labneh dip with Mediterranean flavors, as well as Fromagerie l'Ancêtre for its lactose-free organic cheddar made from milk from grass-fed cows, also made it into the ten finalists.

Eyes towards Asia for Signé Caméline

Signé Caméline is celebrating ten years of marketing its camelina oil this year, to which must be added eight years of research and development.

"This award is a real accolade," said Chantal Van Winden, founder and president of the Saint-Édouard SME in Montérégie, interviewed just after the awards ceremony at the Toronto Convention Centre where SIAL Canada is taking place.

She recently sampled her new product in Asia and says the reception was excellent.

"We presented it in Japan, China, Taiwan, and Korea," she says. "It was unanimous; everyone loved it. It's a great success that's coming."

This buttery-tasting oil has only been on the market for a month, which should help the emergence of this SME, which is enjoying meteoric growth.

"Our sales are growing very strongly," says Chantal Van Winden. "We've seen an 80% increase in 2024 compared to 2023, which is huge in the food industry."

The SME already exports 35% of its production and the Asian market represents "enormous potential" according to it.

"We're really seeing a big pull in Asia," she continues. "People there are looking to eat well, and when you talk to them about omega-3s, they understand and they're looking for foods to help them age well."

The SME has also developed animal products from camelina residue, which is recovered and recycled after pressing to extract the oil. This oilcake contains a high omega-3 content. It is used as a dietary supplement for horses and chickens, as well as in dog treats.

"It's another innovation," the boss emphasizes. "We sell a lot of them in the United States."

She estimates that these animal products could ultimately represent 40% of her turnover.

Japan in Montreal with Brasserie San-O Sake

Founded in 2021 by a Japanese couple who have lived in Montreal since 2018, Brasserie San-O Sake specializes in amazake, a traditional Japanese fermented rice. It's with this product that they created a vegan, dairy-free chocolate spread. "We transformed the rice starch into natural sugar," explains the company's president, Noriko Suzuki. "We mix it with hazelnuts and cocoa powder." She says she loves eating it in the morning with her coffee.

The young company was launched with her husband Yota Suzuki, who was a sake brewer in Japan, and Montreal restaurateur Masum Rahman. It specializes in koji, the fermentation of grains like rice or legumes like soybeans, which is practiced in Japan.

The SME produces koji rice, miso, amazake (a fermented rice drink), and sugar made from fermented rice starch. In May, it will add beer. Sake will also soon be on the menu once the Régie des alcools du Québec gives the green light.

"We supply our products to approximately 70 high-end restaurants in Montreal," says Noriko Suzuki, whom we met at SIAL Canada in Toronto.

In the case of miso, she points out that almost all of it comes from Japan, which imports Canadian soybeans to produce it. She therefore hopes that some of the miso consumed here will be produced locally.

The businesswoman intends to grow her company without resorting to mass manufacturing. "We want to increase the size of the equipment, but we want to maintain a traditional approach," she maintains.

She even aims to export part of her production, such as her sake, which she would like to sell in New York.

The full article here .