Trends in the Natural Products Industry

A few weeks ago I attended a conference the Natural Products Expo, the world’s largest  organic food and product expo in the world, with nearly 65,000 attendees and over 3,000 exhibits.

So now I’m going to painstakingly cover all 3,000 for your reading pleasure.

OK, OK -- maybe I’ll instead just cover a few of the companies and trends I saw throughout the weekend in Anaheim.

Before getting into some specific companies, there were some definite stand alone trends I took note of.

First, cha cha cha chia was EVERYWHERE. Yes, the same chia that was popularized with chia pets is now in Chia pudding, chia drinks and chia bars were just a few of the options I saw.  And there are some benefits, from the high fiber content, to the healthy fats and slowed digestion by including them in the diet.  I’m a fan.

Second, coconut is big.  Like chia, coconut has made its way into many products and then of course, it’s sold and used by itself for cooking.  I am a fan of coconut as party of the diet and when replacing less healthy saturated fats.  That being said, one company I  saw and liked is Kelapo.  They make coconut oil in a variety of forms, including spray (think non stick spray, like Pam, but instead this is 100% coconut oil).  You can use it for cooking, but even better in my mind is using it on popcorn, so you get a healthier saturated fat than traditional butter and use less overall because the spray coats more of the popcorn but enough to allow other ingredients (cayenne pepper, salt, etc to stick to the popcorn).

I also saw a lot of grains served in different forms -- quinoa flour and quinoa pop, roasted hemp seeds and others.

Outside of trends, here’s a few other companies that stood out.

Bela Sardines.  I LOVE sardines.  They’re high in omega 3’s, CLA, protein and vitamin D, yet low in mercury.  I even enjoyed some of these with our 16 month old, who surprisingly dug right in with me!  I particularly like their focus on sustainability and the different flavors they offered.  Give them a whirl.

Speaking of seafood, Wild Planet was there and is another canned seafood company I truly believe in.  In addition to wonderful sardines, their salmon and tuna are second to none.  Once you try these, you’ll taste the difference.  Because of the way their products are processed vs. more traditional “big” canned seafood companies, the difference is clear.  The canned seafood actually tastes like fish.  The packets of seafood in particular  are super convenient for travel, when you likely don’t have a can opener or a sink to drain them.  They’re all awesome.

Sticking with the seafood and omega 3 theme, my favorite fish oil company was there -- Nordic Naturals -- where they were kind enough to be dishing out $50 bills to anyone “caught” wearing their viking helmets around the Expo.  They have the cleanest, highest quality fish oil products on the market ... and are a company I’m happy to be associated with as an educator.  So happy, in fact, that I dressed up like a Viking with my favorite Nordic employee.

Outside of food, there are also natural & organic skin care products.  And I was introduced to a company that my daughters are now addicted to -- Badger Company (badgerbalm.com).  They make sunscreens that are awesome (we used them the other day on our trip to the zoo -- zinc oxide is used, which has been shown to be very effective and they’re chemical free.  But they’re not addicted to the sunscreen, they’re addicted to the “Badger Night Night Balm” which has now been introduced as part of our night routine, where they both get a little lavender & chamomile balm foot rub and dab under their noses.  When I say addicted, when I wasn’t home one night ... our 3.5 year old went into meltdown mode because “daddy isn’t here to put our night night balm on.”  So it’s a blessing and a curse, but awesome, awesome products I feel super comfortable putting on our kids.

Those are just a sampling of some that I saw.  More to come in future posts, but it’s certainly a great expo with a ton to see!

Disclosure: I am an educator for Nordic Naturals

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