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How this product came about… After the financial fallout of the 90s and an unstable exchange rate which devastated our business, we decided to turn to export products. This proved to be an extremely long and discouraging episode, but a good and invaluable lesson. Jamaican traditional products cannot compete traditionally. We had to do the hard work. Learn, Create and Innovate. The result was a number of unique products, one of which is Nice Rice.

The main challenge was… authenticity. It took us three years before the product hit the shelves in April 2015. We conducted taste samplings in Jamaica, North America and Europe — got feedback and had to go back to the drawing board several times. We discovered that only by using certain Jamaican raw material would we attain that authentic taste. A major challenge was that key raw materials, in the state needed, did not exist. The solution was achieved by investing in several pieces of specialised equipment, using the best ingredients and innovative procedures. We were now able to produce high quality, natural, healthy and delicious products with long shelf life without using preservatives.

Nice Rice is available… islandwide in all Progressive Foods, all Shoppers Fair Supermarkets, all Lee’s Food Fair, all MegaMarts, all Brooklyn supermarkets, John R Wong, Loshusan, Family Pride, and Maxim Wholesale.

Nice Rice is successful because… rice and peas is a Jamaican staple, which is enjoyed across all cultures, classes and ages. Its preparation, though, is an extremely time-consuming affair in a fast-paced convenience world.

Nice Rice was created to save you time and money by allowing you to cook perfectly delicious rice and peas quickly and easily every time! Just add water and it’s ready in 20 minutes!

Customer response has been… overwhelming and phenomenal. Some have expressed amazement and surprise at its authentic taste and convenience, while others have expressed pride in the fact that this is a Jamaican product and offer encouragement for us to take it worldwide. We will.

Our plan now is to… expand our product line. Having established the market locally, we are currently expanding store count in Toronto, Canada and Florida, USA. Our hope is that we will truly make this Jamaican product global in three years. Thankfully we have a good ally in today’s consumer. She is wonderfully fickle!