Big Mountain Foods Making Big Moves

Big Mountain Foods is a women and family-owned plant-based food brand based in Vancouver, British Columbia (B.C.). It currently has 12 products on the market, all of which are certified-vegan, common allergen-free and non-GMO verified.

And they are seeing some BIG growth in new markets.

Led by Kimberly and Jasmine Chamberland, the natural vegan food manufacturer has made exciting distribution partnerships.  Over the past few years, the company has seen exponential growth and recognition, locally and internationally, including partnerships with retail chains such as Kroger (US) and Loblaws (CAN).

These partnerships, paired with their local success, helped facilitate the move into a sprawling new 70,000 sq. ft facility in Delta, B.C. in the past year. The space will provide the company with the tools and international reach to make their plant-based foods more accessible than ever. Big Mountain Foods also aims to have a zero-waste facility by 2025.

“I am so proud of the expansion Big Mountain Foods has undergone to get to this point, and we are ready to move forward into a larger facility with the top talent in place to execute our product outreach strategy across the USA, Canada and Asia over the next five years,” says Kimberly Chamberland.

Established in 1987, the company is one of the true pioneers in the plant-based industry in Canada. The company stays true to its mission of creating food that you can enjoy with your family, regardless of dietary restrictions or preferences.

In 2019, Big Mountain was a participant in a Trade and Invest B.C. booth at Natural Products Expo West (NPEW), the world’s largest trade show and conference for natural, organic and healthy products. NPEW typically hosts more than 80,000 attendees and 3,500 exhibitors. Out of all those exhibitors, Big Mountain Foods was one of only a handful of companies that was able to successfully connect with US grocery retailer Kroger. This opportunity jump-started their US exports over the next few years and was a key driver of growth for their company.

Big Mountain Foods was also a winner at the New Hope Network 2021 Expo East NEXTY Award for outstanding new products in the natural products industry. The Original Chickpea Tofu won for Best New Specialty Diet. Big Mountain Foods won again in 2022 for their Lion’s Mane Mushroom Crumble. NEXTY Awards are given to products that display outstanding innovation, inspiration and integrity. These products help drive the underlying goal of the natural products industry to deliver more healthful, trusted and sustainable products to consumers.

Big Mountain Foods also launched four new “Veggie Links” products across Canada and the US. The sausages, which come in styles from chorizo to bratwurst, are made from Saskatchewan-grown split peas—and, like all of Big Mountain’s products, are certified-vegan, gluten, nut and soy-free, and non-GMO verified. The strong commitment to sustainability is just one reason why Big Mountain Foods won the Emerging Exporter Award, sponsored by Trade and Invest British Columbia, from Business in Vancouver in 2021.

The Vancouver-based manufacturer has been a supermarket mainstay since its inception due to the quality of their plant-based products, as well as the loving care put into their creations. Coming from four generations of entrepreneurial women, Big Mountain Foods also prides itself on being entirely female-owned and 90 per cent female immigrant workforce.

The company also seeks to minimize its environmental impact by using renewable resources and minimizing waste. Upcycling allows them to transform by-products into new value-added functional products. Their sustainable processing standards conserve thousands of litres of water per year. Partnering with local farmers reduces Big Mountain Foods carbon footprint and supports its mission of environmental sustainability from the ground to the shelf.

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