Expo West

In our second report from the show floor of Natural Products Expo West 2023: Cali’Foods picks up Mikey’s as part of a larger expansion plan; Miyoko Schinner shares her story; and MeliBio unveils plans to enter CPG.

In our first notebook from Natural Products Expo West 20223: Bon Devil has a new owner; Jason Starr joins Awakened Foods as CEO; and brands look to fruit-based sweeteners and more sustainable pouch packaging options.

At the close of the event’s opening day, BevNET managing editor Martin Caballero and BevNET & NOSH editor-in-chief Jeffrey Klineman discuss their initial observations and takeaways thus far from Natural Products Expo West 2023 in Anaheim, California, including a pair of exits for two young brands in the bottled water space, a spike in mood-boosting and brain-focused drinks, and how the beverage and supplement markets continue to overlap via product innovation.

As more Americans continue to work from home and look to cut extraneous expenses — say, a stop at the juice bar on the way to the gym — lockdown-era habits have entrenched themselves into consumer routines. In turn, many frozen fruit producers have embraced smoothie kits, with some innovative brands managing to outpace the category and maintain strong growth despite the headwinds facing the CPG industry today.

Outside of its traditional domain in Asia, seaweed is rapidly gaining popularity among CPG food brands and consumers alike in the United States for its multitude of positive attributes including the potential to help achieve carbon neutrality and mitigate deoxygenation and eutrophication.