The replacement for Natural Products Expo East, Newtopia Now 2024, launched in the center of the country, kicking off last August in Denver, Colorado. Prepared Foods’ contributing editor Kerry Hughes, MS, ethnobotanist and principal for EthnoPharm covered the inaugural show, sharing highlights of the botanical ingredients as well as other ingredients and CPG products showcased there in the Mile-High City.

The show drew more than 7,000 attendees and some 560 exhibitor companies. One of the main features of the new expo and conference observed by Hughes was its partitioning into four “neighborhoods” showcasing products by groupings that included, as described by the organizers: “Thrive,” exploring the future of human health; “Represent,” celebrating diverse founders and multicultural products; “Regenerate,” championing sustainability and environmental impact; and “Glow;” featuring conscious beauty and holistic wellness.

Exploring the show, Hughes revealed several trends, one prominent one being products featuring medicinal mushroom ingredients. “[There were] mushroom coffees, mushroom-like matcha, and mushroom teas,” she noted. “There [also] were a few mushroom proteins and even mushroom growing kits.” She especially noted a mushroom energy drink enhanced with adaptogens.

Another botanical ingredient Hughes found cropping up in several products featured was rose, including rose-infused chocolates and rose-flavored ice cream, a traditional treat known throughout the Middle East and Southwest Asia.

Sweeteners, too, enjoyed a more botanical tweak with date- and carob-sweetened items. Although these sweeteners are still composed predominantly of sucrose and fructose, as Hughes notes, the flavor profiles of these sweet agents are “a little bit more powerful, so you can cut your sucrose amount in your product.” And, of course, they allow for a more inviting ingredient panel when it comes to labeling.

Other products and ingredients of interest noted by Hughes include a coffee analog from figs, birch tree water, and products that promote the production of GLP-1 in the body, specifically a probiotic supplement containing live Akkermansia muciniphila microbes. (If foods and ingredients targeting natural GLP-1 production are of interest, be sure to check out the November 2024 issue of the Prepared Foods e-magazine.)

Botanicals of Newtopia

Ethnobotanist Kerry Hughes covers trending ingredients and products featured at Newtopia 2024.

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