Mr. Speaker, the 10th edition of the MercadOr awards gala recently took place. The awards recognize the success of exporters in the Laval region.
The leading exporter award went to Pelican International, a pleasure craft manufacturer and the third largest kayak manufacturer in the world.
Alpha Vision won for best foreign ventures, for its ability to set up shop close to its clients, both in the United States and Germany.
Équipement d'emballage MMC and Cirion won in the market diversification category. Équipement d'emballage MMC opened it doors in 1991, penetrated Latin American markets in 2005 and is now targeting Europe. Cirion, which specializes in biotechnology, entered the American market in 2000 and now does 35% of its business in Europe.
Lastly, Bedcolab, a laboratory furniture manufacturer, was honoured as best new exporter. It began exporting to the United States in 2003, and those exports south of the border now represent 40% of its revenues.
My Bloc Québécois colleagues and I would like to congratulate the award winners and commend their contributions—