Georgetown: Organisers and exhibitors at the Guyana Trade and Investment Exhibition (GuyTIE) on Saturday, the final day, hailed the event a success.
Local entrepreneur Rodiek-ah Defreitas known as the ‘Spice Girl’ was one of the many persons who displayed their variety of product to patrons and international investors.
Her brand, called Diekah’s Spices is hitting the market with the flavor that has many returning.
She produces seven combinations of herbs and spices and ensures that they are prepared, packaged and stored in a way that guarantees supreme, long-lasting flavours and maximum health benefits. The packaging is also now more attractive than when she first started.
Her spices are: Chicken Seasoning; Garlic Powder; Cook-up rice Seasoning; Chowmein Seasoning; Fried rice Seasoning; All Purpose Seasoning and Fish Seasoning. She also makes Pepper pot, Jerk and Barbecue Seasonings on a limited scale, which she will officially include in an expanded line of products as her business grows.
Her Chicken Seasoning is a combination of turmeric, ginger and black-pepper with smaller quantities of other ingredients. Turmeric, she explained, has several health benefits and also helps to tenderize meats.
She includes dill in the mix for her Fish Seasoning because it has properties that boost good health.
Dill is a good source of calcium, magnesium and iron, so consuming it regularly can help relieve cramps and depression, and it also helps to lower cholesterol, she explained.
Rodiek-ah buys a variety of powdered herbs from local businesses which she then combines. She also adds a few local ingredients, which she dries and blends.
The businesswoman says that local seasonings are generally sold in bulk and the cost is prohibitive for the volume she produces. However, she intends to incorporate more local herbs into her combos as her business picks up. She dubbed the event a success
Coordinator, Tameca Singh said the objectives outlined by the committee for Guyana’s first ever business-to-business event were achieved.
Singh said: “A couple of our exhibitors have been able to make deals on the floor. Also, they were able to get into markets they have been trying to get into for quite some time. It has been quite exciting for us. Those were the stories we wanted to hear and that’s the reason we created this platform. I think the bar has been set for this event and we can only go up from here.”
Several exhibitors at the event said the response to their product launch over the past three days has been overwhelming.
“This has been a really great forum for us. It has really brought a lot of potential buyers. The response was magnificent. We have buyers from Toronto, Canada, and the Caribbean. They were all excited when they saw our products because they were impressed with our quality,” said Cheeka Kunjbeharry of Roy’s Quality Spices.
Many patrons, local and international buyers had their final look at the products on display. Both local and International investors were impressed with the exhibition, noting that Guyana has surpassed its title of “developing country”.
The event is expected to be an annual one in the Caribbean.
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