joyful plate
Natural Products Expo West 2018
Brand & Business Insights

Our Uber driver said “Oh, you’re going to the Natural Products Show? I’ve been driving people all day- I hear there are 85,000 people attending this year-that’s as many people as the Super Bowl!”.

We say this every year, but this seemed to be the tipping point of Expo West: new halls, new brands, new hopes, new dreams. Natural eating has gone mainstream, and CPG has gone natural- evident in the massive attendance. As market researchers, our antennae are always up, listening to cultural evidence of this in daily interactions. Knowing that I work on food trends, two middle-aged suburban men recently told me how much they like Beyond Meat, amazed by its semblance to a real meat experience. And recently at a St. Patrick’s Day celebration I thought it was telling that the conversation centered around the benefits of quinoa, despite the bacon and bangers front and center on the table.
Times they are a- changin’.

Click here to read more: Expo West