Co. Ltd.

relationship with China,” says Mr. Bachew. “We get a lot of our packaging materials from China, so the impact of supply delays and huge increases during the Covid period had a massive impact on us. Freight from China went up significantly. Then, after Covid began to recede, the war in Ukraine started. All of our glucose came from there, so the entire supply was halted. Given that glucose is one of our three main raw ingredients along with sugar and flavouring, it was serious. However, we weathered it and found new supply chains, helped by our long-standing partnerships with suppliers worldwide.”

Birthday Celebrations

With a century behind it, KC Candy was keen to celebrate its historical successes by engaging in a number of new initiatives. One such venture is KC Kids In Need (KIN) Foundation.

“Recently we started a new foundation called KC KIN (Kids in need),” Mr. Bachew says. “As you can appreciate, kids form a big constituent of our customers and there are lots of kids in need in terms of health, economics, and education. Our intention is to support those disadvantaged kids as best we can. We set up that foundation up in August 2022, and 2023 is the year we are going to really make an impact with it.”

Mr. Bachew highlights another special event led by KC Candy for its centenary anniversary – the creation of a stamp:

“As part of our 100th year celebrations we have launched a stamp alongside the country’s postal service, Trinidad and Tobago Postal Corporation (TTPOST). We have stamps with some of our products and history. It’s a good innovative piece of advertising we have out there.”

The company is also working on a particularly ambitious piece to celebrate its history: branding its hometown of Couva. “We want to create a welcome arch in Couva,” explains Mr. Bachew. “They will say KC – Candy City – reflecting the connected histories of the town and our company. We are currently working with our local authorities to see how best we can do this.”

And to top it all off, the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce recognised KC Candy’s contributions and awarded the company in October 2022:

“Recently, we won the ‘Internationally Known… T&T Owned Company of the

Year’ that was awarded by the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce. It is a very proud feather in our hat. The award illustrates what a small company can achieve, and it has helped provide an incentive to countless companies in our country. It highlights the vision that you have and the confidence it takes to thrive. It reminds companies not to think of themselves as a small player, but to think globally while acting locally. That way you can really make a difference.”

SOCIETY, ENVIRONMENT, ECONOMICS

KC Candy would not have received such accolades without putting in hard work. One of its most important considerations in short- and long-term planning is sustainability, which Mr. Bachew says is built on three pillars:

“Society, environment and economics. Once a company can marry and find a good blend among those three things, it all goes well.

“For a company like ours, the question of the environment is a big one. We

Caribbean Flavours and Fragrances is the premier supplier of quality flavours and fragrances for beverage, baking, confectionary and ice cream manufacturers across the Caribbean.

WE ALSO PROVIDE:

• Trusil Powder Flavours

• Food Colouring

• Essential Oils

• Saromex Spice Extracts

• Spice Emulsions

60Am Boundary Road Extension, San Juan, Trinidad and Tobago

CONGRATULATIONS TO KC CONFECTIONERY ON REACHING THIS MILESTONE OF 100 YEARS IN OPERATION. We are pleased to be their partner for packaging.

Call. 1 868 228 3592 | www.flexipactt.com discharge effluent from the factory, which can be glucose-based or sugar-based. We have also emissions from our manufacturing going into the air. These are things that we monitor and manage all the time and are always looking for the best solutions. At the moment, for example, we are in the process of constructing a wastewater treatment plant. That will treat all our effluent and discharge, so that whatever we discharge is pure clean water. Meanwhile, our emissions are very clean and the impact is minimal. We frequently test our levels, and they are on your 100th anniversary from

As you celebrate this momentous milestone, we join you in honoring your past, celebrating your present and looking forward to your future.

CARIBBEAN PACKAGING INDUSTRIES LTD. Leading manufacturer of high quality corrugated packaging in the Caribbean.

IN CELEBRATION OF ITS 100TH ANNIVERSARY, THE UNVEILING OF OUR NATIONAL STAMPS well within all environmental standards. We are very conscious of sustainable development and all the sustainable development goals identified at COP27.

The first time in Trinidad & Tobago, (TTPOST) Trinidad and Tobago Postal Corporation launched a scented stamp. The stamps will contain a candy aroma that will be activated once scratched. The QR code is also embedded in the stamp design.

“In terms of society, we give back to all our surrounding schools, religious organisations, and anyone that comes to us for contributions. A lot of people do because they know we like to help. It’s not usually on a big scale individually, but when you add it up at the end of the day, it’s a significant amount used to help our local communities. KC Candy is on board with important issues such as poverty eradication, gender equality, and equal access to education for everyone. We are very conscious of that and almost all of our decisions are centred around that. It’s a very customer-centric, environment-centred business, and we contribute what we can to achieving sustainable development goals.”

Building A Future On The Success Of The Past

The goal for KC Candy’s future is deceptively simple: continue doing what’s made it successful for the last 100 years. What’s made the company so successful, though, it the exact opposite: not sitting still, but constantly moving and adapting.

“We’re at a juncture now looking for the new paths, asking: ‘What do we need to do to continue?’” Mr. Bachew says. “How do we expand our production line to keep up with demand? How do we grow our export market? Those questions are the main driver for us right now. Our local market is very small. We have a population of 1.4 million people in Trinidad and Tobago. If we are going to continue to grow this company, it must be in the export market.

“We’re at 22 countries right now, and our intention is to nearly double that in the short-term future so we can expand and widen our global footprint. We want to export to 40 countries within two years.

Building that takes a lot of product development, logistics planning, and understanding of markets so that we know how to be competitive. These are the burning issues right now that we are looking into as we plan for the next 100 years.”

However, KC Candy displays strong confidence in its capabilities, the same confidence that helped it win the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce’s prestigious award.

“It’s a big task but we can do it,” says Mr. Bachew. “We have the strength, fortitude, technical competence, and skill sets to go out there and expand and build on the successes we’ve had over the last 100 years.” c