Today I was at the first ever From the Ground Up consumer show. I have been to similar trade shows where new and up coming products were featured and attendees were able to chat directly with owners and producers, trying before buying.
However, this was the first ever to be of solely BC goods with a conference, trade show, and this: the consumer show. Hosted at the PNE Forum in East Vancouver.
The origins of From the Ground Up started in 2019, under the name “Good to Grow”, when they launched the only 100% BC-wide trade show. The following year they added a conference for the exhibitors. And now in 2025 they have added a third day with the launch of this consumer show. The goal is to showcase and support the incredible processors, producers, and food landscape that we have available to us so locally in BC.
Doors promptly opened at 10am with a line formed well in advance. What I expected was booths with vendors offering samples to taste there, and more to take home, to try and enjoy at your leisure. This was especially the case as we were given large boxes with handles to store and carry at the entrance. However, this will occasion would be better described as an indoor farmer’s market, where the goal was to sell goods at discounted special event pricing.
With four aisles to walk there was quite a bit to peruse through, and with a focus on food and drink plenty to eat and drink. My biggest take away was how easy it would be to replace a lot of the brands I have been using with very local alternatives instead.
The largest offerings were sauces, predominately hot sauces. These were sampled straight with a dollop or smear on stir sticks. Many of which did as intended and stung a little.
I especially liked the pun-focused sauces ones from Elk & the Tide in Victoria. We had to try the parmesan forward “Crack Dressing” for name alone. I loved the garlicky flavour of their “Ketch me Outside” fermented black garlic ketchup. Sadly only brought their sauces and not their seasonal pickles, and were sold out of their spreads that included a truffle option.
Squeeze is a freeze dried fruit brand that offered shelf stable fruit as crunchy snacks or for use as baking toppings. They had banana, strawberry, and mango; to name a few.
The dessert options were widely popular, like Earthling Food’s Dacaron, based out of Port Coquitlam. A trademarked, one of a kind “cookie” that is an airy, lightly crisped, and not-too-sweet almond meringue pastry with a naturally flavoured, grassfed buttercream filling. Available in a variety of flavours like ube.
Little Spoon is a local line of over indulgent and over loaded ice creams available by the scoop and within sandwiches. They had a limoncello with stoli vodka and whole lemons, a rhubarb pie with flaky pie crust and jam; and a chocolatey number with brownie, fudge, and caramel.
I appreciated the local bakers present, like Whisked Away with her line of chocolate ganache stuffed cookies, having her entire collection on artful display.
Familiar and already popular local brands like Dicky’s Dump were well received. They had multi-level stackable steamers going, to serve samples of their all natural pork and onion filled, hand folded dumplings.
Anh and Chi, promoted their line of Vietnamese inspired soy sauce, fish sauce, and chilli crunch over garden rolls.
Tayybeh with their own restaurant and line of frozen products was sampling their popular pita chips and line of Mediterranean chickpea, eggplant, and red pepper dips.
I really liked Mabel Brewing’s non-alcoholic ginger beer. A shelfstable pre-and probiotic brewed beverage with apple cider vinegar and ginger. Available in light, spicy, and blackberry; each low in calories and declared not your average ginger beer.
Wise Bites caught my attention as the first brand in Canada to offer a functional cracker. Instead of a protein and fibre rich bar or cookie, they have crispy and crumbly one bite turmeric and rosemary flavoured crackers that include vitamin D. They also do cupcakes and fudge bars free of all 11 allergens like gluten, nut, and dairy.
Archipelago, known for importing Indonesian goods was sampling their Indonesian coffee. A variety of beans from their organic land, boasting a more aromatic fragrance.
If I wasn’t going out after I would have picked up some of Phorozen’s frozen pho. They were sampling their broth in either veggie or beef by the mini cup, and I loved the full bodied flavour of what I had, enough to buy.
The one man behind Hello Dal-ing, jarred lentil soup was a phenom. A great personality befitting of such a fun and bold branding and packaging.
I thought the idea of Fromage‘s cottage cheese protein pop, that looked and ate like an ice cream bar, an interesting alternative.
In short, this was a great showcase and a fantastic way to get better acquainted with local.
PNE Forum
2901 E Hastings St, Vancouver, BC V5K 3N7
(604) 253-2311
pne.ca
