Healthy living is paying off for Natural Products Expo West.
The expo, hosted by Colorado-based show organizer New Hope Network, is one of the main trade shows for the natural products industry, and was the largest convention held in Anaheim in 2023, with an attendance of 67,000.
This year’s just-completed show, held from March 12-16, brought in over 65,000 people, still leaving some room to return to its 2019 levels of 86,000.
Close to 100 Orange County-based manufacturers and retailers were among 3,300 businesses and brands setting up at the Anaheim Convention Center to display natural and organic products in foods and beverages, personal care, supplements and ingredients, alongside well-known national names such as Impossible Foods, Clif Bar and Liquid Death.
The exhibitors took up 813,600 square feet of space at the convention center during the five-day event.
Exhibitors use the event to connect with prospective clients and partners for their business. Many brands debuted new products at the event.
Costa Mesa’s Abbot’s had its newest line of vegan and plant-based non-meat options for attendees to try, while Pulmuone Foods USA Inc. of Fullerton showcased more of its non-tofu products.
“Our priority when it comes to the expo changes from show to show,” Costa Mesa-based truffle-infused condiment company Truff Executive Vice President Reno Yanes told the Business Journal.
“In past years, we wanted to meet a bunch of retail buyers, and now that we’re in most grocery stores in the country, it’s good for us to see our buyers, shake hands, and have them check how business is going.”
Rice Refresh
Owned by LT Foods Americas, rice maker Royal believes it still has room to expand its line of offerings, even with the No. 1 basmati rice product in the U.S.
The company, headquartered in Cypress, started out selling dry rice in canvas bags more than 30 years ago; it was acquired by LT Foods in 2007. LT’s parent company is based in India and counts Daawat in its portfolio.
About six years ago, Royal introduced microwaveable rice and expanded the line by adding different flavors.
Two new flavors, lemon, garlic and herb, and white queso and jalapeño, debuted at the manufacturer’s booth at Natural Products Expo West.
Royal also debuted a meal kit featuring a traditional rice dish called biryani that will be available in stores and online next month.
Royal’s rice is sold on Amazon, can be found in grocers such as Albertsons and Costco, and is provided to food service clients.
Japanese Miso in Irvine
Food manufacturer Marukome USA Inc. was established 17 years ago in Irvine, while its parent company in Japan has been making miso and soy sauce since 1854.
Marukome now distributes 50 products across the states, for both consumer and food service use. Two new products, a miso sauce and concentrated soup, will launch in May and June, respectively.
Assistant Manager in Marketing and Business Development Ayumi Takeuchi noted a recent rise in demand for fermented products such as kombucha in “healthier” eating habits.
Similar fermented foods like the company’s miso paste and koji, an ingredient used to make soy sauce and sake, are benefiting from this boom as of late.
The fourth generation of the family continues to lead the Japan-based company with Tokio Aoki as president. Takeshi Azuma is the president of its U.S. division.
Marukome has exhibited at Natural Products Expo West since 2009. Takeuchi said that the event is a great way to see people try their products in person.
While the company’s factory in Irvine will remain its sole manufacturing facility, Marukome is considering opening more office branches to oversee nationwide distribution.
The manufacturer is almost ready to open a brand-new showroom at its factory in mid-April where guests will be taken on a tour of the facilities and shown the history and process of miso fermentation.
Shake It Up
Even the largest local players in the natural products industry make sure to attend the show for exposure. Irvine-based Orgain Inc., now backed by Nestlé Health Science that acquired a majority stake in the protein powder maker in 2022, returned to this year’s Natural Products Expo West to exhibit on the main floor.
The company was founded by Dr. Andrew Abraham in 2009 because he saw there were no satisfactory protein shakes in the market that could help cancer patients unable to keep down solid foods.
He marketed Orgain online at first, then thought to purchase the least expensive booth at the Natural Products Expo where Abraham gained his first retail partner—Trader Joe’s.
Now, Orgain has grown its footprint to more than 30,000 retail doors including Whole Foods, Costco, Target and Walmart.
Other investors in the business, reported to be valued at $2 billion at the time Nestlé invested, include RX3 Growth Partners in Newport Beach and Beverly Hills’ firm Butterfly Equity. The latter remains a minority investor along with Abraham, who stayed on as chief executive.
Now one of the leading food manufacturers in the U.S. and OC, Orgain recently launched a handful of new protein mixes and vitamins to its growing line of kids products.
Nestlé has an option to fully acquire Orgain this year.
Drink Up
Positive Beverage, created as an alternative to sugar-filled energy drinks, is on a mission to scale out its electrolyte-filled sparkling waters to new grocery stores and retailers.
Founded in 2016, the Newport Beach-based brand has been in about 3,000 retail doors across the country since launching its first product in 2017, including local spots Bristol Farms and Pavilions.
Positive Beverage will enter Ralphs stores this year and is working to enter other grocers like Mother’s Market and Sprouts Farmers Market soon.
Shannon Argyros, one of the startup’s investors and current chief executive, stood watch at the company’s booth at this year’s Natural Products Expo West to answer questions, offer samples, and chat with existing buyers while hoping to connect with potential retailers and distributors.
Argyros, daughter-in-law of real estate executive George Argyros, runs the startup alongside founder Zach Muchnick, who serves as chief operating officer.
This year marks Positive’s fifth year of attending the show.
“That’s why we’re here, to meet with your Sprouts, your Whole Foods, your Targets,” Argyros told the Business Journal.
“It is essential to attend,” Argyros added.
Positive Beverage currently has two lines of energy drinks, caffeinated and non-caffeinated, in a variety of flavors.
Spicing Truffles Â
Costa Mesa-based condiment company Truff first launched in 2017, and gained popularity online for its truffle-infused hot sauces.
Los Angeles-based private equity firm SKKY Partners, founded by television celebrity Kim Kardashian and business partner Jay Sammons, is taking a “significant minority” stake in Truff this year.
Since the announcement late last year, the company launched its Jalapeño Lime Hot Sauce in Whole Foods in January and expects to roll out in 4,000 more retail stores in the next three to four months, according to Executive Vice President Reno Yanes.
Truff gave out 15,000 mini bottles as samples to Natural Products Expo West attendees, citing the event as an opportunity to gain more exposure for its newest product.Â
“We got to have new people who have never seen it before try our sauce,” Yanes told the Business Journal.
Founders Nick Ajluni and Nick Guillen initially started Truff as a social media account before launching its first product, a hot sauce combining black truffles and red chili peppers.
Truff has since expanded outside of hot sauces, offering 11 condiments ranging from truffle-infused mayonnaise to pasta sauces.
Truff’s products are sold in over 25,000 grocers and big-box retailers including Target, Kroger and Publix.
