Bees are nature’s original innovators – turning flower nectar and pollen into “liquid gold.” Rich in antioxidants and amino acids, honey has been revered as a very special and unique food product for centuries.
Sandra Thiessen from Beary Berry Honey Inc. in Alberta knows how special honey truly is. Beary Berry is a family-owned apiary running between 1000 to 1500 hives in the Beaver County area. Aside from selling raw honey on the wholesale market, they produce a wide range of unique and innovative ‘Naturally Fruit-Flavoured Honey’, teas, glazes, vinaigrettes, and mead products in their commercial kitchen, which are available for retail throughout Canada. Beary Berry Honey truly is a one-of-a-kind business.
In 2003, Sandra and her family purchased the apiary, however, in 2004 the price of honey in the barrel on the wholesale market fell to below the cost of production. They prayed that God would give them a vision of what they could create to sell using honey as the markets were saturated with farmers selling plain honey.
The next year brought inspiration. In 2005, the business had a vision of creating flavoured honey using real fruit (with no artificial flavours or colours). Thus began countless hours of research into how they could successfully do this. The main challenge or uncertainty with developing such a product was that honey will spoil if the moisture content surpasses 20%. In 2006, they saw success with the development of their first red raspberry-flavoured honey and, through their secret honey creaming process (treating raw honey so that it has a stable consistency over time), went on to develop 10 different flavoured honeys using 100% real fruit from there.
This innovative success led them to build their own CFIA-approved commercial kitchen on the apiary property and helped overcome hurdles with honey regulations and developing products unknown to the industry.
At a trade fair with Save On Foods in 2014, a third-party company introduced them to the SR&ED program and they started submitting SR&ED claims. After some challenges in writing their claims to meet CRA requirements, Sandra started working with SRED Unlimited.
Said Sandra, “SRED Unlimited is very knowledgeable in SR&ED claims and working with CRA, and can take all our notes and research and turn it into a claim. They are willing to take the time to research our industry and understand the processes we have had to take to develop our expanding company’s product lines.”
SRED Unlimited’s level of confidence, knowledge, and expertise made the submission process easy and seamless. “SRED Unlimited is the most professional, knowledgeable and yet personable company we have worked with to date.”
SR&ED tax credits have provided Beary Berry with the financial assistance to keep researching new product ideas that have not been done with honey to date. Their work has allowed them to introduce new honey-centric products to the market and expand their customer base year over year. And we think that’s the bee’s knees!
Visit Beary Berry Honey at https://bearyberryhoney.com/
Anybody who’s ever spent any time doing recipe or process development or enhancement has likely engaged in scientific research and experimental development without really realizing it. Success in claiming SR&ED for such work requires being able to demonstrate and describe your work in terms the CRA requires. Simply developing a “unique” product isn’t enough. Your claim needs to describe how your product development process is non-standard or less than standard in some way, and how the experimental process either produced the results you were looking for or failed to do so.
The food industry is one of the most challenging domains in which to translate process and food production challenges into the food science criteria of SRED. We are uniquely and extensively experienced in navigating and submitting SRED claims for large- and small-scale food processors, co-packers, co-manufacturers, and commercial kitchens. We understand the ingredients of a successful SRED claim.
Our experienced consultants help you maximize your claim and your refund. SRED Unlimited has worked extensively with breweries, distilleries, kitchens, bakeries, and food producers. Contact us for a free 15-minute consultation to discuss your food or beverage project.
