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Top 10 Organic Products from Natural Products Expo West 2024
For as long as I have been covering the organic food industry and giving out Natural Products Expo West awards, it has always been a Top 5 list.
However, due to the incredible number of fantastic products that I saw at the 2024 show and at the urging of my good friend Liana Werner-Gray, I have expanded the list to a Top 10.
So, here are my Top 10 Organic Products from Natural Products Expo West 2024.
ENER-GHEE FROM KEY TO THE MOUNTAIN
Montana-based Key to the Mountain brought something quite spectacular to the show: Ener-GHEE.
Made with dates, one of my favorite foods, and combined with the nutritional powerhouses of walnuts and ghee, Ener-GHEE is an energy snack that keeps you fueled for up to four hours.
Keto-friendly, raw, organic, gluten-free and 240 calories per pack, it comes in four flavors — Cascara Coffee Crave, Cocoa Crush, Vanilla Victory and Coconut Conquest — and the ghee is made in-house from grass-fed cows. Also, there is one vegan option that is made with coconut oil, instead of ghee.
Although it is a refrigerated snack, Ener-GHEE lasts outside of the fridge for several weeks, and it played a valuable role in keeping me fed and energized during several parts of Expo West.
MICRO MANGO COLD-PRESSED JUICE WITH REGENERATIVE ORGANIC CERTIFIED® HEMP MICROGREEN POWDER FROM NOURISH
I first came across Nourish Cold Pressed Juice at Natural Products Expo East 2021 when the company unveiled something I had never seen before — HPP organic juice in a keg.
Since then, the brand has hardly been sitting still and showed its prowess to innovate with something it unveiled at Natural Products Expo West 2024 — Micro Mango Organic Cold-Pressed Juice infused with Regenerative Organic Certified® hemp microgreen powder.
The ROC hemp microgreen powder from Pocono Organics, which won my Top 5 Naural Products Expo East 2023 award, is a one-of-its-kind product. It contains up to 40x the nutrition of regular hemp seeds and is grown in less than 2 weeks in nutrient-rich soil.
Needless to say, cold-pressed organic juice infused with this hemp microgreen powder makes for a very special and unique combination.
PARTIALLY BAKED SOURDOUGH BREAD FROM ESSENTIAL
I got advance notice about Essential from its PR person and was very excited to try this sourdough bread many days before the show even began.
And it did not disappoint. At all.
In fact, it was one of those instances at the show that I could barely contain myself, eating sample after sample.
Comprised of only four ingredients — wheat, water, sea salt and yeast — and made with a 100+ year-old starter, this organic bread comes partially baked and you finish baking it at home. What makes it really unique is that the Essential FreshSeal™ locks in freshness for 6 months, making it a shelf-stable product.
When it comes to innovation with bread, Essential is as interesting of a product that I have seen.
Available at Costco and Whole Foods Market.
PLANT-BASED KIMBAP FROM OCEAN’S HALO
Have you ever gone to the supermarket, looked at the prepared sushi and walked away because it wasn’t organic?
Me too.
Well, Ocean’s Halo has come to the rescue. The company has rolled out two frozen versions of kimbap, also known as Korean sushi, in two varieties — veggie and noodle.
Apparently, at the show, there were seven different brands that introduced kimbap, but this was the only organic version. Also, I was told that the CEO of Whole Foods Market and his team were at the Ocean’s Halo booth for 30 minutes talking about this product.
Clearly, I was not the only one excited about Ocean’s Halo organic kimbap, and it will be rolling out to retailers nationwide this year.
This is a game-changing product for Ocean’s Halo — a brand that I have been closely following for many years.
A2/A2 PROBIOTIC SOUR CREAM FROM ALEXANDRE FAMILY FARMS
Alexandre Family Farm has won my Best of Expo award so many times that I think I need to rename this column.
The brand consistently delivers innovative organic A2, certified regenerative products from grass-fed cows. And at Natural Products Expo West 2024, this continued with its organic A2 sour cream.
With 25% milkfat, not only is it a rich and creamy sour cream, but it supports a healthy gut microbiome with live active probiotic cultures.
This A2 organic sour cream is the first of its kind in the U.S. market and should be a massive hit.
For those unfamiliar with A2….
Traditionally, cows produced milk with A2/A2 beta-casein protein, but over time, a mutated A1 gene worked its way into dairy cattle. It is believed that many people’s bad reactions from dairy — gut issues, inflammation, congestion, autoimmune diseases — are a result of consuming the A1 protein. As such, a majority of people self-diagnose themselves as lactose intolerant.
However, Alexandre Family Farm has found that about 80-90% of people who think they are lactose intolerant are actually A1 intolerant. Many of these people can actually drink A2 milk with no problem.
Goat, sheep, water buffalo and even breast milk are all A2/A2 beta-casein protein, and the company breeds and tests all of its cows so consumers can trust that the organic milk is always 100% pure A2/A2. The milk is non-homogenized, low-temperature pasteurized, American Humane Certified, contains 4.5% butterfat and is produced on a grass/pasture, fifth-generation family farm in California.
PLANT-BASED BEET JERKY FROM THEO’S
I had been hearing and reading about THEO’s Plant-Based for a few years but had never come across it in a supermarket.
So, when I stopped by the booth at the show, I somehow had it in my mind that this was mushroom-based jerky — even though the box clearly said “Beet Jerky.”
Regardless of the cognitive dissonance I was suffering from, there was zero confusion about how incredibly satisfying and mouthwatering this product ended up being. In hindsight, this should not come as a real surprise given the very serious culinary experience of co-founder Theo Mourad.
He has worked in food for over a decade, including as a chef at Blue Hill at Stone Barns, which many people regard as the best farm-to-table restaurant in the world.
During this time, he felt that no plant-based products offered the delicious vegetable experience that he was used to, so he founded THEO’s.
And, wow, did he nail it.
The beet jerky is a savory vegetable snack made with regenerative organic beets, and it comes in four flavors — salt & pepper, savory BBQ, ginger teriyaki and spicy sriracha. Vegan, paleo, Non-GMO and gluten-free.
ADAPTOGENIC SUPERFOOD RAMEN FROM SHAMAN RAMEN
Looking to up your instant ramen game?
If so, Shaman Raman has got you covered — in a big way.
Shaman Ramen introduced the world’s first organic superfood adaptogenic ramen. It is made with rice noodles and chickpea miso, and the product is infused with adaptogens, such as moringa, turkey tail, cordyceps, lion’s mane, reishi and shiitake.
Available in three flavors — Savory Mystic Miso, Spicy Cosmo Coconut and Sacred Soothing Chik’n — and everything is soy-free, gluten-free, vegan and Non-GMO.
And to ensure that the ramen’s taste is right on point, one of the most influential and respected Michelin star chefs is an actively engaged partner in the company — a rarity in the organic food world.
YERBA MATE FROM AMAZ
The founders of Brazilian-based AMAZ asked themselves the following question: What if the magic of the rainforest can restore more than just our bodies but the ecosystem itself?
And that is exactly what they set out to do, utilizing a farming technology called agroforestry and transforming the way we relate to the Amazon through environmental partnerships and the life-giving powers of superfoods.
The end-result is AMAZ — a sparkling organic superfood drink that features yerba mate, a traditional South American plant known for boosting energy, enhancing mood and sharpening mental focus.
Not only does each can contain 160mg of caffeine and no added sugar — everything is sweetened with organic juices — but the immune-boosting adaptogens, such as yanomami mushrooms, suma root, acerola cherry and guarana, are all sourced from the Amazon.
AMAZ comes in three flavors — Original, Pineapple Passion and Orange Blizzard — and is low in calories and vegan-friendly.
It is very rare to find a company whose mission, sourcing, nutrition and taste to be so aligned and at such a high level, and that is precisely what AMAZ has accomplished.
PLANT-BASED COCONUT BACON FROM MADLY HADLEY
A majority of the alternative bacon products I have tried in the past failed to live up to expectations.
However, I cannot say that about the plant-based organic coconut bacon from Madly Hadley. I was absolutely floored by how founder Madelyn Hadley nailed the flavor profile and texture.
But I am hardly the only one who feels this way.
A plant-based chef over the past six years, Madelyn Hadley has made coconut bacon for various clients while working as a private chef and for her cooking classes, and people kept asking her asked her where they could buy this product.
Now I know why, and I will definitely be adding Madly Hadley’s coconut bacon to my salads and soups.
It comes in the original flavor, as well as spicy cayenne and flamingo habanero.
KIMCHI PROBIOTIC SHOTS FROM TULUA
If you’ve been reading my work over the years, you may know that I am a huge fan of Korean food.
So, I could not help but be drawn to the Kimchi Probiotic Shots from Tulua.
Skin Health (turmeric ginger) and Gut Health (organic passionfruit) offer the many health benefits of kimchi, the fermented cabbage dish, in addition to gochugaru — a fiery and flavorful Korean red chili that ignites taste buds and nourishes with essential nutrients and antioxidants.
These organic shots, which come in glass bottles, help promote gut and skin health, and because this is a fermented product, it does not have to be pasteurized, microfiltered or HPP’d.
Such a smart and on-trend product.
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Visit Organic Insider to read my full recap and analysis of Natural Products Expo West 2024.
