Manitoba Harvest

WINNIPEG, Manitoba–Exports of products from Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods & Oils™ have grown more than 500 percent during the past year, according to the company as it plans to exhibit its full line of hemp foods at the organic trade show BioFach from February 17 to 20, 2010.

This is the third consecutive year that Manitoba Harvest has exhibited at BioFach, which is held annually in Nuremberg, Germany. The show will feature more than 2,500 exhibitors, and is expected to attract more than 45,000 retailers and industry experts from more than 100 countries. At the show, Manitoba Harvest will announce a new distribution partnership that will help the company expand into previously untapped regions of Germany and eastern European countries such as Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovenia. In 2009, Manitoba Harvest exported products to eight nations (in addition to the United States) including Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Germany, Italy, United Kingdom, Ireland and Japan.

Fast-Growing Canadian Company is Vigorously Expanding into New Markets

Winnipeg, Manitoba – Hemp foods are one of the hottest health food trends in North America, and a fast-growing Canadian company is demonstrating that there is a healthy appetite for nutritious hemp foods overseas, too. Due to a vigorous international sales initiative over the past few years by Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods & Oils (www.manitobaharvest.com), exports of their hemp foods beyond North America have skyrocketed more than 500% over the past year. So far in 2009, the company has exported products to eight nations (in addition to the United States) including Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Germany, Italy, United Kingdom, Ireland and Japan.

Now that medical researchers, nutrition experts and chefs in the U.S. and Canada are demonstrating that hemp is a nutritious and eco-friendly superfood with vast culinary applications, the company is using this backing and their eleven years of experience educating consumers to cultivate interest in markets around the globe. Their success has not happened by chance. Manitoba Harvest employees have been busy traveling overseas to research market opportunities and to meet with retailers, food manufacturers, distributors and consumers.

Canadian Hemp Trade Alliance- Annual Convention Nov 16-18 2009, Victoria Inn - Winnipeg, Manitoba

Since 1998, Canada has grown industrial hemp for seed and for fibre. Canadian farmers and businesses are interested in the growing business of hemp as it realizes its potential to produce healthy food and environmentally-friendly products, including paper, textiles, biocomposites and sustainable building materials.

To tap into the plant's exciting potential for Canada, the industry recognized the need for a common national front. The CHTA/ACCC was formed in 2003: we are a non-profit national group of hemp processors, marketers, farmers and information specialists.

Topics for their convention include: Hemp Variety Development, Harvest Research, THC Testing, NAFGEN & Hemp, Fatty Acid & Amino Acid Analysis, Hemp as a Building Material, Fibre Handling, Animal Feed Trials and many others.

For a full list of events: http://www.hemptrade.ca/docs/2009_National_Hemp_Convention_Programme_Oct...

Source: http://www.hemptrade.ca/events.php?id=17

By Eric Stan

Many people would dismiss arthritis as a simple and natural process of aging when in fact it is not. It is a crippling disease; slow yet debilitating. Arthritis has many forms and accompanying painful symptoms. Somehow, in the advent of modern-day technology and medical breakthroughs, we look for an organic alternative way of battling arthritis knowing that it is safer and economical yet effective.

Arthritis simply means inflammation of the joints. We have a variety of joints in our body and this condition pertains to the swelling and pain that occurs in the affected area of someone inflicted with it.

What happens to the affected area is coined as “cartilage and bone gravel.” Due to the overstretching of muscles which cause damage to the joints, what is left of the bones as well as the cartilage, would forcefully rub against each other which causes throbbing pain as well as worsening the damage of the affected joints. This continues to happen over and over again; it becomes a painful cycle and it gets worse over time.

Although it seems to be a dead end, there are lots of alternative natural treatment options available and there is one that will suit your criteria perfectly.

WINNIPEG, Manitoba - Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods & Oils partnered with Renewable Choice Energy to offset 100 percent of their production facility's electricity with wind power offsets, and all of their facility's natural gas usage through carbon offsets. Renewable Energy Credits, like those purchased by Manitoba Harvest, are verified, certified and audited by Green-e, a widely respected non-profit program. The purchase of Renewable Energy Credits allows companies like Manitoba Harvest to guarantee the electricity they consume is replaced with clean power.

In 2008, Manitoba Harvest installed many environmentally-friendly features into their new organic processing facility in Winnipeg including energy efficient lighting, R20 insulation to lower heating and cooling costs, and energy efficient HVAC heating and cooling systems approved by the Manitoba Hydro Power Smart Program.

Founded in 1998, Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods & Oils is the largest farmer-owned, vertically integrated hemp food manufacturer in the world. The company mission is to create the healthiest hemp foods, to educate the public about healthy lifestyle choices and to support sustainable and organic agriculture.

Source: http://www.naturalproductsmarketplace.com/hotnews/manitoba-offsets-elect...

The Fast-Growing Canadian Company Exhibits at Leading Organic Shows in Germany & United Kingdom

By Food Biz Daily

Winnipeg, Manitoba – One of the fastest growing private companies in Canada is fueling its growth by expanding further into the vast organic food marketplace in the United Kingdom (UK) and the European Union (EU). Today, Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods & Oils is announcing its new partnership with Re-Action Sales (www.reactionsales.com) of Middlesex, UK to distribute their hemp food products throughout the UK. Earlier this year, Manitoba Harvest forged a partnership with Hempro International (www.hempro.com) to distribute their nutritious foods in Germany.

“We’re capitalizing on more than a decade of experience as a hemp foods pioneer and innovator in North America to penetrate organic markets in Europe with innovative hemp products like our organic hempmilk,” says Mike Fata, President and co-founder of Manitoba Harvest (www.manitobaharvest.com). “We began selling hemp foods in Europe in 2006, and our sales have doubled in each of the years since,” says Fata. “People everywhere are finding out that hemp foods are extremely nutritious - and then they try them and discover that they have a delicious nutty flavour and gourmet appeal,” he adds.

By Lauren LaRocca, News-Post Staff
Photo by Sam Yu

Margaret Hluch of MOM -- My Organic Market in Frederick -- pours a sample of hemp milk. The market also carries a variety of hemp-based products besides hemp milk.

Long known for its strength and durability in products like clothing and paper, hemp might prove to be just as beneficial in another medium: food.

Turns out, hemp is a leading source of protein (especially beneficial for vegetarians and vegans), it contains all 10 essential amino acids, it's high in fiber, and it tastes good, too, if an acquired taste.

Christina Volgyesi, originally from Canada but now living in Portland, Ore., stumbled upon hemp protein powder during a trip home after never having seen it in the States.

"I really just became amazed," she said during a recent phone interview.

She and her husband began experimenting with hemp seeds, making their own hemp milk in a blender. They added sweeteners, like agave nectar and honey, until they found a recipe they liked.

Soon after, they became the founding partners of Living Harvest, a company that now offers an array of hemp products, including hemp milk in five flavors (original, unsweetened original, vanilla, unsweetened vanilla and chocolate).

In April, they'll launch their ice cream line.

"I've always been interested in nutrition as a way of life," said Volgyesi, now the vice president of marketing for the company.

By Murray McNeill, Winnipeg Free Press

These are high times for hemp.

Not only is demand for hemp products skyrocketing -- Canadian hemp seed exports increased by 300 per cent and hemp oil exports by 85 per cent from 2006 to 2007 -- but one of the country's oldest and largest hemp food producers, Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods & Oils, is moving into a new state-of-the-art processing plant this week that will boost its production capacity by 500 per cent.

And Wednesday, the federal and provincial governments added icing to the cake with the unveiling of a new national strategy for developing the hemp industry in Canada.

"In the last 10 years, the Canadian hemp industry has grown from an emerging niche market to a point where we are now being recognized as a global leader in hemp production," said Mike Fata, chairman of the Canadian Hemp Trade Alliance (CHTA) and president and co-founder of Manitoba Harvest Hemp.

"With the province's support, this hemp strategy has given us a road map to new opportunities and continued growth of the hemp industry in Canada."

Fata said the creation of a national strategy gives the industry instant credibility.

"It proves the industry is here and it's not just a fad."

The strategy was announced on the second day of the CHTA's two-day annual meeting and technology conference in Winnipeg.

More than 100 delegates from Canada, the United States, Europe and Korea attended the event, designed to bring industry players up to date on the latest developments within the global hemp industry.

By Manitoba Harvest

Hemp seed is an ancient superfood that has a rich history of culinary enjoyment, as well as use by cultures as a traditional medicine to enhance health and well-being. Over the past few years, this nutritious and eco-friendly seed has been gaining more attention from nutrition and health experts and deservedly so. Scientists in Canada, a country where hemp agriculture is thriving and experiencing a rebirth, recently performed research to study hemp seed's role in maintaining heart health. The title of the abstract from their research sums things up well, Cholesterol Induced Stimulation of Platelet Aggregation is Prevented by a Hempseed-Enriched Diet.

In somewhat technical terms, the authors of the scientific paper establish that Hypercholesterolemia indirectly increases the risk for myocardial infarction by enhancing the ability of platelets to aggregate. Their research, published in the April 2008 edition of the Canadian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology*, investigated whether hempseed, a rich source of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), inhibits platelet aggregation under normal and hypercholesterolemic conditions. The results of this study demonstrate that when hempseed is added to a cholesterol-enriched diet, cholesterol-induced platelet aggregation returns to control levels, noted the authors.