‘It’s been a very wonderful adventure’: Business owner brings tastes of Mauritius to Nova Scotia

Crystal Garrett meets another one of the women helped by the Centre for Women in Business SPICE Program.

The Specialized Program in Cooking Entrepreneurship (SPICE) through the Centre for Women in Business helps female entrepreneurs in Nova Scotia learn to build and operate successful food service businesses.

Tanya Suefna’s company is one of the most unique.

Mo Gato Mauritian Delicacies offers dishes from Mauritius – a tiny island nation in Africa east of Madagascar. Suefna started the company in 2022 after moving to Canada. She said she didn’t know any other Mauritians in Nova Scotia when she arrived.

“In Canada they are very spread out so I was trying to find my home here,” she said. “There’s a little taste missing here and I would love to share.”

After scouting the farmer’s market and realizing she could offer something new, Suefna started serving Mauritian food at the Alderney Landing market. She started with one kind of strawberry-guava flavoured cookie.

“From there it’s been a very wonderful adventure,” she said. “Now we’re over 20 unique flavours.”

Suefna owns the only business in the region providing food from Mauritius – a country in the Indian Ocean where many flavours from India, China, the Middle East, Africa and Europe come together.

“Basically all the countries that settled on the island,” she said. “We all joined together and created this amazing food.”

Spice program lead, Natalie Frederick-Wilson said Suefna’s holiday-friendly foods are perfect for the season, from “gorgeous” Neapolitan cookies to lamington cakes. She said Suefna’s business demonstrates what’s so importance about the SPICE program.

“More than anything, we are highlighting that throughout the course of the time that we’ve been here, we’ve brought you so many cuisines,” Frederick-Wilson said. She said the SPICE program and the centre are for all women, no matter where they are from.

“If they have an idea, if they are looking to grow and scale a business, we can help them.”

In 2025 Mo Gato introduced traditional savoury Mauritian dishes to compliment its sweet treats.

Mo Gato is now serving fried noodles and “melt-in-your-mouth” buttery shortbread cookies through catering, at shows throughout the region and every Saturday at the Halifax Brewery Market.

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