This year the Natural Products Expo East took place in the Baltimore Convention Center. A bigger venue also made for a bigger show, and with more than 1300 exhibits the show was indeed rich. The exhibits ranged from Organic, Health & Beauty, Natural & Specialty Foods, Natural Living, Pet Foods and Supplies, Dietary Supplements and more. Despite heavy rains the floor was bustling with activity and so we hope that followup business will be brisk.
The 4th floor new product pavilion featured new and not so new products ranging from tea drinks, organic leaf tea, pasta sauces, frozen fruit pops, power bars in every shape and form, raw food snacks, eco friendly laundry detergents, pet foods and snacks and supplements, some amazing cookies and chips of special functions, textures and colors… the list goes on and on.
The main floor featured the standard big names in their respective categories of distributors, manufacturers, service providers, publishers as well as the international players congregating in their country’s pavilions.
The real business, however, took place on the third floor where major retailers set up their money making operations in private suites. One by one small manufacturers came to meet with buyers who made sure to sell them circular ads, magazine features, newspaper inserts, newsletter inclusion, banner ads – all on top of demands for FREE products and listing fees. We are curious to hear how you would describe the experience with these meetings. A few words at the bottom of this page, or for longer reflections, click here and we might give you a stage.
Hi, I love natural, healthy food that is best for your body and your mind, since I grew up eating mostly them. To me it's the alpha…and omega. You have my fully support.Congrads! Greetings from Greece.
We (WingFoot Chia Drink Mix from Chia Stuff, Inc) loved the Baltimore Expo! As Platinum Sponsors of the NonGMO Project we were delighted to meet Megan Westgate and couldn't believe how young and beautiful she is. We found a food broker for the East Coast. We met 2 very helpful people from UNFI East who promised it would be easy since we are already in UNFI West. We learned a lot from Tom Wright and Michael Besancon regarding responsible packaging. Reconnecting with our neighbors from past Expos is always fun and bringing our first Cal Poly Food Science Intern, Molly Wren-Holmes, was a blast. She was a great asset and learned a lot. Getting to spend time with our Sales Manager, Deb Hilbert, at such an exciting event was so much fun it felt like a vacation. I was especially pleased to be given samples of ingredients that I've been wanting to try in product development. And, as always, it's fun to bring home samples to family and friends and see what they like enough to add to their shopping list. Looking forward to Anaheim!
Natural food products are amazing for bettering your body, but you can also do that with organic hair and skin products. Don't forget that what you put ON your body is just as important as what you put in it. Nourish your skin.
I love the Natural Products Expo I go every year and always find green products that help me live a healthy life good for my mind and soul helps me walk the walk…..