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3.20.2024
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Highlights and Takeaways from Natural Products Expo West 2024


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Natural Products Expo West 2024 in Anaheim wrapped up this past Saturday, and it was an absolutely phenomenal show. The 67,000 attendees experienced some outstanding innovation from the 3,000 brands showing their latest products.

Here are my key thoughts, takeaways and trends from Natural Products Expo West 2024.

CALIFORNIA DEFINING “REGENERATIVE AGRICULTURE”

If there was one issue that stood out more than anything at the show, it was the discussion around California’s decision to legally define “regenerative agriculture.”

We first wrote about this last May, and despite the fact that several influential organic advocates have commented during the public listening sessions, the level of concern at Expo West was extremely high. This is something being closely watched around the world, not just in the U.S., and there is little optimism that organic will be protected.

(Image from the California Department of Food and Agriculture)

The fear around this issue is twofold.

One, consumers may soon be misled into thinking that “regenerative agriculture” — a farming method that does not preclude the use GMOs and toxic chemicals, such as glyphosate and dicamba — is better than “organic.”

Two, this will accelerate the use of harmful pesticides, further cementing the control that chemical companies have over our agricultural system.

The next listening session takes place on May 29, 2024.

GROWING PRESENCE AND INFLUENCE OF REGENERATIVE ORGANIC CERTIFIED®

ROC ROA regenerative organic alliance ecology center dinner

From the Regenerative Organic Alliance’s dinner at The Ecology Center to its commanding presence at The Fresh Ideas Tent, on the show floor and in panel sessions, the Regenerative Organic Certified® (ROC) add-on label is gaining very serious traction at Expo West and in the marketplace.

There is a growing sense among many top brands that if they actually can procure ROC ingredients (multi-ingredient products are still a challenge because of supply chain constraints), they will attempt to do so.

ROC’s momentum is undeniable and shows no sign of slowing down.

harmless harvest organic coconut water ROC regenerative organic certified expo west 2024

starwest botanicals ROC regenerative organic certified expo west 2024

 

REAL ORGANIC PROJECT MAKES ITS DEBUT TO ORGANIC BRANDS

real organic project naturland expo west 2024

Even though add-on label Real Organic Project (ROP) had booths at 2023 Expo West and 2023 Expo East, last week’s show was significant because it was the first time ROP started to aggressively pursue organic brands for its certification.

Until now, ROP has largely been a U.S.-based farmer certification, but its partnership with Germany’s Naturland, which certifies 140,000 organic farms around the world, gives it a massive global supply chain to tap into.

I moderated a panel for Real Organic Project at Expo West, and the turnout was standing-room only.

“It was exciting to speak with so many folks in the food system whose values align with those of our farmers, and there was tremendous interest from brands at the show in getting certified,” said Linley Dixon, co-director of Real Organic Project.

Similar to ROC, Real Organic Project prohibits hydroponics and factory farms, both of which are allowed by many, but not all, organic certifiers.

 

ORGANIC OSCARS

jennifer garner gary hirshberg organic oscars expo west 2024(Photo courtesy of The Organic Center)

Once Upon a Farm’s Jennifer Garner and Stonyfield’s Gary Hirshberg hosted the first-ever and sold-out “Organic Oscars,” a night to celebrate the outstanding successes of individuals and businesses in communicating the benefits of organic, along with the work of groundbreaking organic researchers.

Hosted by The Organic Center and Organic Voices, “An Organic Night Out” showcased honorees in eight categories — all nominated and chosen by their peers.

The winners were:

Company of the Year: Organically Grown Company

Most Impactful Research Finding: University of Wisconsin (Madison) and CROPP/Organic Valley

Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year: Painterland Sisters

Best New Food or Beverage: Patagonia Provisions Kernza Beer made with Regenerative Organic Certified® kernza

Best New Non-Food Product: Naturepedic Concerto Organic Pillow Top Mattress

Best Organic Messaging: Organic Valley

Best Retailer Activation: Good Earth Natural Foods

Best PR or Social Media Campaign: Lundberg Family Farms

 

NEW PRODUCTS LINES

nature

Nature’s Path unveiled a new line of organic flours, including whole wheat, all-purpose, baker’s blend, gluten-free all-purpose and keto all-purpose.

 

uncle matt

Celebrating its 25th year in business, Uncle Matt’s Organic is expanding its product line beyond juices to now include tea.

 

kuli kuli organic powders citrus c marine glow moringa

In a departure from its moringa-based products, Kuli Kuli has introduced two new organic superfood powders — Marine Glow (pineapple, blue spirulina, kelp and marine mineral blend) and Citrus C Defense (acerola cherry, baobab, hibiscus and lemon blend).

 

SUJA LIFE AND TREASURE8 SIGN PARTNERSHIP

suja organic treasure8 partnership

During Expo West, Suja Life (the parent company of both Suja Organic and Vive Organic) and Treasure8 announced a strategic partnership to harness Treasure8’s patented USDA SAUNA™ technology to transform Suja Life’s organic sidestreams into premium, upcycled powders — all with the goal of maximizing nutrition and flavor while slashing production time, cost, energy use and CO2 emissions.

At its booth, Suja Organic also showcased its recently launched organic plant-based protein drinks, which come in three delicious flavors — coffee bean, chocolate and vanilla cinnamon.

suja organic treasure8 plant protein smoothies review

 

TRADIN ORGANIC’S PLANT-BASED MEAT ALTERNATIVE

plant-based meat Tradin Organic meat alternative vegan organic expo west 2024

Global ingredient supplier Tradin Organic unveiled a brand new plant-based, organic meat alternative blend consisting of only three ingredients: organic green peas, organic fava beans and salt.

This product will be sold as a dehydrated dry bulk pack with a 2-year shelf life, and customers can rehydrate with water and oil, so the price point is on par or less expensive than conventional meat products.

“We consistently got astonished reactions on the great texture and flavor of the samples,” said Hobbs Wolcott, president of Tradin Organic. “Customers and retailers consistently wanted to know where to find it, and I cannot wait until someone formulates with this product and launches a new item we can buy off the store shelves!”

Some smart organic brand will create a plant-based meat or fish alternative out of this. I couldn’t stop eating it.

Tradin Organic meat alternative vegan organic expo west 2024

 

MAJOR EMPHASIS ON GUT HEALTH 

It didn’t take long at the show to realize that so many organic products were focused on gut health, something of tremendous interest to consumers these days.

tulua organic kimchi shots organic insider expo west 2024

Organic kimchi probiotic shots from Tulua.

 

forager project vegan dairy-free cultured cashew milk organic expo west 2024

Organic probiotic cashew and coconut yogurt alternative from Forager Project.

 

Alexandre Family Farm A2 kefir review organic regenerative expo west 2024

Organic A2/A2 grass-fed, regenerative probiotic kefir from Alexandre Family Farm.

 

black cherry organic kefir lifeway gut health organic expo west 2024

Organic black cherry whole milk cultured kefir from Lifeway.

 

lowfat organic blueberry kefir straus organic organic expo west 2024

Organic blueberry lowfat cultured kefir from Straus Family Creamery.

 

pure culture organics kefir lactose free organic expo west 2024

Organic lactose-free kefir from Pure Culture Organics.

 

sipjoy from Brew Dr sparkling probiotic refresher organic expo west 2024

Organic probiotic sparkling refresher from Sipjoy, a new line from Brew Dr.

 

Organic probiotic sparkling water from GoodBelly.

 

ORGANIC HYDRATION POWDERS

While GoodONYA’s Hydrate may very well be the market leader when it comes to organic hydration and electrolyte powders, other organic brands are emerging.

Green hydration organic electrolyte powders expo west 2024

GREEN has introduced an organic coconut line consisting of four flavors — cacao, lime, guava and pineapple.

 

sprout living organic hydration electrolyte powders expo west 2024

The Colorfuel Hydration from Sprout Living is made with organic plant-based superfoods and adaptogens.

 

CLEAN LABEL PROJECT BEVERAGE

Chlorophyll water clean label project verified

It is very rare for a non-wine beverage to get Clean Label Project certified, and I have never seen any Clean Label Project beverage at Expo West before.

So, huge kudos to Chlorophyll Water for pursuing this certification, and I hope many organic beverage brands follow suit.

Jackie Bowen, executive director at Clean Label Project, is doing amazing work, and every brand should be testing for heavy metals, pesticide residues and plasticizers.

 

FINAL NEWS AND NOTES

* The Non-GMO Project is expanding its scope and has launched the Food Integrity Collective, a broad collective of mission-driven stakeholders to collaboratively guide the retail food system.

* Nutrient Density Alliance hosted a panel session at Expo West and released its first white paper Engaging Consumers on Regenerative Agriculture: How Brands Can Integrate Nutrient Density for Top-Line Growth.

* At the Fresh Ideas Tent, I learned about a very important non-profit called CouldYou?, an organization that seeks to eradicate period poverty by 2040.

* The 2024 Greg Steltenpohl Pragmatic Visionary Award went to Zacharia and Mary Ben, who founded Bidii Baby Foods LLC, a co-op that makes indigenous baby food, and the runner-up award went to Peetachai “Neil” Dejkraisak of organic rice brand Jasberry.

* New Hope piloted a Zero Waste Sampling program at Expo West. Fantastic initiative.

With gratitude,

Max Goldberg, Founder

This Week's Quick Hits

Quick Hits

* My Top 10 Organic Products from Natural Products Expo West 2024.


* David Bronner, Cosmic Engagement Officer (CEO) of Dr. Bronner’s, on Regenerative Agriculture: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly


* Patagonia is celebrating 10 years of its film DamNation.


* HumanCo’s Jason Karp is taking on Kellogg’s for using artificial additives despite the company having pledged to stop — a continuation of the critical work that Vani Hari started many years ago.


* PCC Community Markets profiles the Rodale Institute Pacific Northwest Organic Center, formerly the original Cascadian Farm.


* Environmental Working Group’s Ken Cook just launched his podcast.


* REBBL has introduced a first-of-its-kind, upcycled certified, Non-GMO barley beverage with 26g of protein.


* In a Fast Company feature, Organic Valley CEO Jeff Frank discusses how to thrive in a mature category through purpose.


* Due to the efforts of Zen Honeycutt and Moms Across America, the city of Mission Viejo, CA has agreed to shift all of its 53 parks and playgrounds to non-toxic lawn care.


* Flora, Fauna, Funga — a short documentary from National Geographic that discusses how fungi underpin every ecosystem on earth.


* Sprouts Farmers Market announces new NIL deals with college athletes.


* The coolest grocery store that never existed.


This Week's News Items

Weekly News Summaries

First Course
Food Navigator

FMI Produce Report: Consumers Turn to Digital Coupons to Save Money, Buy Less Organic in 2023

By Ryan Daily

The organic produce market saw low dollar growth and declines in volumes, as price remains an obstacle for many consumers.

PR Newswire

Serenity Kids raises $52M in Series B

The round was led by Stride Consumer Partners LLC.

Food Dive

USDA Organic Rules are Changing. Is the Food Industry ready?

By Lydia Noyes

There’s growing concern that many in the organic food industry -- importers, brokers, handlers and distributors -- haven’t made the necessary compliance changes.

Second Course
AgFunder News

Targeting $50M, Mad Capital unveils New Fund Aiming to De-Risk Regenerative Organic Farming

By Jennifer Marston

Speciality finance shop Mad Capital has received early commitments from The Rockefeller Foundation and others, and it is already actively deploying capital to farmers.

Forbes

Amara raises $20M

By Elaine Pofeldt

The organic baby food brand closed an oversubscribed $20M Series B funding round, which was led by HumanCo.

Iowa State University

Organic Farming Study Tackles Questions of Soil Health and Economics

Professor Kathleen Delate at Iowa State University will use modeling and field research to understand the long-term impacts of crop rotations, no-till practices and use of composted animal manure for fertilizer.

Morning Ag Clips

USDA Announces $40.5 Million in Grant Awards to Support Processing and Promotion of Domestic Organic Products

Selected projects will benefit more than 31.8 million consumers and more than 27,000 producers.

Third Course
Food Dive

Expert: Food Companies are Tackling Scope 3 Emissions Despite Weak SEC Rule

By Chris Casey

Businesses will continue working to lower their indirect emissions because of pressure from retailers and state governments, according to a sustainability tech executive.

Green Matters

EWG releases its 2024 Dirty Dozen and Clean 15

By Sophie Hirsh

Topping the list of the 2024 Dirty Dozen are strawberries, spinach and kale.

Fresh Fruit Portal

USDA releases Tool for Crop Producers Transitioning to Organic

The new tool will ultimately streamline the organic transition process and help producers more easily take advantage of all USDA programs.

Food Business News

Global Cocoa Market Teetering on the Brink of Chaos

By Crystal Futrell

Plummeting supply and surging prices have caused a meltdown in the chocolate market. And analysts are growing less hopeful for a quick correction.


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This Week's Quick Hits

Quick Hits

* My Top 10 Organic Products from Natural Products Expo West 2024.


* David Bronner, Cosmic Engagement Officer (CEO) of Dr. Bronner’s, on Regenerative Agriculture: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly


* Patagonia is celebrating 10 years of its film DamNation.


* HumanCo’s Jason Karp is taking on Kellogg’s for using artificial additives despite the company having pledged to stop — a continuation of the critical work that Vani Hari started many years ago.


* PCC Community Markets profiles the Rodale Institute Pacific Northwest Organic Center, formerly the original Cascadian Farm.


* Environmental Working Group’s Ken Cook just launched his podcast.


* REBBL has introduced a first-of-its-kind, upcycled certified, Non-GMO barley beverage with 26g of protein.


* In a Fast Company feature, Organic Valley CEO Jeff Frank discusses how to thrive in a mature category through purpose.


* Due to the efforts of Zen Honeycutt and Moms Across America, the city of Mission Viejo, CA has agreed to shift all of its 53 parks and playgrounds to non-toxic lawn care.


* Flora, Fauna, Funga — a short documentary from National Geographic that discusses how fungi underpin every ecosystem on earth.


* Sprouts Farmers Market announces new NIL deals with college athletes.


* The coolest grocery store that never existed.


Newsletter Topics

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