Island Abbey Foods, the Charlottetown-based maker of Honibe lozenges, has successfully grown into export markets enough that four-fifths of its sales this years will come from outside the country.

Founder and President John Rowe said recently that the company made three-quarters of its money in Canada in its first five years to 2013. Last year there was a balance between domestic and export sales. And this year 80 percent of the company’s sales will come from export markets, even though sales continue to grow within Canada. He attributes the growth to the company’s sales culture.

“You have to get out there in person,” he said as he accepted the regional Start Canada Award for Exporting at a ceremony in Halifax this month. “You’re able to create lasting relationships. More important, you’re able to do your own due diligence on [the buyers] and learn whether you want to do business with these people.”

Rowe and his wife Susan began the company in 2008 with proprietary products made from pure dried honey. Its Honibe Honey Drop is an individual serving (one teaspoon) of 100 percent pure dried honey and has won many awards, including the prestigious Global SIAL d’Or in 2010, which recognized the Honibe Honey Drop as the best new food product in the world.

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Rowe takes the pride in the fact that his products had distribution in a national retail chain within two years of their launch, even though it can take established food companies five years to get their product on supermarket shelves.

The company now exports to 35 to 40 countries, and this past summer had to increase production at its Charlottetown plant to 24-hours-a-day due to strong overseas sales. Island Abbey now employs 70 to 75 people and has not needed to raise capital since 2012.

As it grows, Island Abbey has continued to release new products.

In September, Island Abbey said it is expanding into the vitamin and mineral supplement category with the launch of four new products under the brand of Honibe Honey Gummies.

“After years of extensive research and product development, we are thrilled to be the first to market with an all-natural honey-based line of vitamins and supplements for both children and adults,” said Rowe. “Staying true to our promise, pure Canadian honey is the No. 1 ingredient in our vitamins, thus cutting refined sugar by 50 percent versus leading brands.”

And this month, the company unveiled two new Honibe honey lozenges – one with cherry flavour and the other with Immune Boost. Island Abbey is selling the product through Shoppers Drug Mart outlets across the country.

The Immune Boost lozenges contain Echinacea, Vitamin C, Zinc and Citrus, which the company says will help fight off a cold in the early stages before it gets worse.