Tradeology, the ITA Blog

This post originally appeared on the Department of Commerce blog.

U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker Presents U.S. Companies with President’s “E” Award for Export Success

Today, U.S. Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker honored 45 American companies and organizations at the 2015 President’s “E” Awards ceremony.  The President’s “E” Award is the highest recognition any U.S. entity can receive for making a significant contribution to the expansion of U.S. exports.

Exports are critical to spurring economic growth and job creation and this year, 26 companies were honored with the “E” Award for Exports for demonstrating a sustained increase in export sales over a four-year period. This year’s ceremony also honored, twelve companies with the “E” Award for Export Service for their work assisting and facilitating export activities, and another four firms received the “E” Star Award for Exports, which recognizes previous “E” Award winners who have reported four years of increased export growth. Secretary Pritzker also awarded three companies with the “E” Star Award for Export Service, which recognizes previous “E” Award winners that have shown four years of continued support of exporters since first winning the “E” Award.

Winners of the 2015 “E” Awards represent diverse communities in 20 states across the country including Van Nuys, Calif.; Edina, Minn.; Gilbert, Ariz.; Chicago, Ill.; Sanford, Fla.; and Ellington, Conn. Among the awardees were 35 small- and medium-sized businesses and 21 manufacturers representing a cross-section of American ingenuity and innovation.

This year’s award recipients include Chicago-based Garrett Popcorn which sells gourmet popcorn from retail shops, and has expanded to sell their products throughout Asia and the Middle East; Nanci’s Frozen Yogurt of Mesa, Arizona, which makes and sells soft serve, flavorings, and smoothie mixes to frozen yogurt chains and restaurants in dozens of countries around the world; and Hernon Manufacturing, Inc. of Sanford, Florida, which makes high-performance adhesives, sealants,  and precision processing equipment, and exports to 44 countries. Each of this year’s “E” Award companies are selling high-quality products and services in every corner of the world and most importantly, are helping to create good jobs for American workers.

Many of the “E” Awardees are able to conduct business internationally as a result of the 14 Trade Agreements with 20 countries currently in place. The Obama administration is working closely with Congress to pass trade promotion legislation, which outlines Congressional priorities on trade agreements, so that the deals currently being negotiated can be put in place.

The “E” Award ceremony is one of the highlights of World Trade Month, a month-long celebration of the benefits that U.S. exports bring to national, state, and local economies through job creation and growth. This year marks the 53^rd annual “E” Awards presentation, which recognizes companies for their contributions to increasing U.S. exports. In 1961, President Kennedy signed an executive order reviving the World War II “E” symbol of excellence to honor and provide recognition to America’s exporters.

American companies are nominated for “E” Awards through the U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service office network, located within the Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration. Record years of successive export growth and an applicant’s demonstration of an innovative international marketing plan that led to the increase in exports is a significant factor in selecting winners.

For the full list of 2015 “E” Awardees, visit http://1.usa.gov/1AaVUur