Natural Products Expo East paid a fond farewell to Baltimore last week, as it prepares for a move to Boston in 2008. Nothing could be more fitting for Expo East, as the east coast’s largest natural products trade show has outgrown its venue and must move to a larger setting.

For me, it was a sad goodbye. The 1999 Expo East in Baltimore was the first tradeshow I attended in the natural products industry. I was a financial analyst at Health Business Partners and was talking up our mergers & acqusitions services as the market boomed into the new century. It was a great show and a great time to be in the nutrition industry.

Natural Products Expo East 2007 possessed the same booming vibe - the organic industry is growing 17% annually, the number of international exhibitors that were part of Biofach continues to climb and Nutrition Business Journal was still canvassing the floor…looking for contacts and innovation in a rapidly growing and dynamic nutrition industry.

I presented a “Market Trends & Opportunities” presentation to the Global Business Program attendees - international executives looking to break into the U.S. nutrition industry. I presented NBJ’s latest research on the specialty supplement markets, paying particular attention to probiotics, fish oils and enzymes. My presentation will soon be posted in the Subscriber Only section of nutritionbusiness.com. Please take a look and let me know what you think via the “comments” feature of this blog. I always appreciate your feedback!

For the first time in many years, I spent alot of time on the tradeshow floor. Most of it was spent in the natural personal care, organic and supplements sections. The organic industry just doesn’t seem to lose any steam. At least half of the companies I visited with were at their first or second natural products tradeshow, nestled tightly together in their 10×10 booths. The energy was very positive in organics. Many were integrating sustainability into their marketing strategies.

The natural personal care section of the tradeshow floor seemed more open, with larger booths being occupied by companies like Aubrey’s Organics and Jason’s Naturals. This category has enjoyed 14-20% growth over the last few years and the booth sizes show it. Many of the exhibiting companies have benefited from private equity investments, detailed in NBJ’s natural & organic personal care issues over the years.

In the supplement section, many of the same companies were present in particularly large booths including Garden of Life, Nature’s Way and newcomer, Aboca. Unfortunately, these supplement companies are struggling with innovation - leaving a little bit to be desired. With new GMP regulations to be phased in over the next few years, I hope these companies won’t struggle with new GMP costs, and will spend on research and development.

All in all, it was a good show for NBJ. If we met at the show, I hope to speak with you soon and appreciate your help in our research. If not, I’m sorry we missed one another and I hope to see you at the shows I’ll be at through 2007: CRN, Nutrition Capital Network, Investors Circle, Supply Side West and UNPA’s China Seminar in December. After that run…I’m booking some time with my snowboard.

Companies/Entrepreneurs Urged Apply by Thursday, September 13th

As applications for presentation spots at the Nutrition Capital Network’s inaugural meeting on October 17 in San Francisco surpass 50, entrepreneurs and growth companies in the nutrition industry are encouraged to submit their applications before the September 13 deadline.

Formed with the mission of connecting the best innovators with the smartest capital in the nutrition industry, NCN is now steeped in its rigorous screening process to assure that the 20 early- and mid-stage companies approved for presentation to the assembled investors are of the highest quality.

At the meeting, NCN will also present awards to the top start-up concepts and present a broad-ranging discussion panel of strategic acquirers, investors and entrepreneurs. Beyond October 17, NCN will offer ongoing connections through on-line and in-person forums, so companies are advised to continue to apply and to monitor upcoming announcements for future opportunities to raise capital.

The inaugural meeting of Nutrition Capital Network starts October 16, 2007 with a welcoming dinner at Campton Place near Union Square in San Francisco. Following its companion event the Health & Wellness Investor Roundtable held on October 16, attendees from both meetings to network at the Campton’s renowned restaurant.

For more information on NCN, the Investor Meeting, registration, NCN principals and Campton place, please visit www.nutritioncapital.com

Nutrition Business Journal and Vitamin Angels have teamed up to offer new NBJ Corporate Electronic subscribers a free ticket to the Vitamin Angels dinner at Natural Products Expo East.

Through September 21, 2007, Nutrition Business Journal is offering 1 FREE ticket to Vitamin Angel’s “Celebration of Angels VIP Dinner” at Expo East with the purchase of a $2,500 Corporate Electronic Subscription to NBJ. Call Mandi Hogan at 303.998.9225 for more information.

An NBJ Corporate Electronic Subscription provides expanded access to NBJ’s database of nutrition industry information, analysis and intelligence. The subscription is renewable on 12-month terms and includes:

• A PDF version of each NBJ issue (plus up to 5 hard copies of each issue of NBJ on request)

• The right to post the PDF version of each NBJ issue on your corporate Intranet

• NBJ issue-specific data files in Excel format, including spreadsheets of the issue data and company lists

• NBJ Weekly eNews delivered to an unlimited number of company readers

• Up to 5 users of the nutritionbusiness.com subscriber-only area, including an archive of selected data and text files associated with each issue, the NBJ Weekly eNews archive and presentation files delivered by NBJ staff and affiliates

• 10% discount on NBJ products including reports, webcasts, data charts and more

Vitamin Angels “Celebration of Angels VIP Dinner” is an exclusive event for visionary leaders in the natural products industry. The event benefits “Operation 20/20,” a campaign to end childhood blindness by the year 2020, as well as many other humanitarian aid projects that address malnutrition throughout the world. Learn more about Vitamin Angels at www.vitaminangels.org.

NBJ will host a live online review of the $85 billion nutrition industry and supplement business on Tuesday, September 11, 2007 at 10 a.m. Pacific Standard Time.

The web seminar will be hosted by Grant Ferrier, Editor-in-Chief of NBJ and Tom Aarts, co-founder of NBJ will contribute.

The webseminar will cover all U.S. nutrition industry product categories and sales channels, with an emphasis on sales, growth and top companies.

In addition, a mid-year 2007 report will be presented on the dietary supplement category.

To register, go to the web seminar homepage.

The Trust for America’s Health just reported increasing obesity rates in the United States.

“No state is doing well. We have seen a dramatic increase throughout the country,” said Jeff Levi, executive director of The Trust for America’s Health.

Naturally, the million dollar question is, “Why is the American obesity rate growing?”

The Trust for America’s Health suggests a comprehensive plan to fight rising obesity which includes:

1. Think Big - more money from the federal government for obesity fighting programs

2. More tools for consumers to make better decisions

3. Incent employers to develop employee wellness programs

4. Increase the amount of research being done to figure out ways to keep people from becoming obese

All great suggestions, but at the end of the day, the marketing of the consumer products goods industry is just too big and powerful…and the foods they produce are so well marketed, formulated and flavored…they are just hard to resist. It doesn’t hurt that children are hooked by sugary products at a very young age, either. Remember Fruitt Loops & Frosted Flakes? I still have friends who can’t resist a bowl of Cookie Crisp every once in a while.

At the end of the day, it’s a personal decision for oneself or one’s family to live a healthy life including exercise, a healthy diet, a healthy mental state and supplementation, where necessary.

Though Marion Nestle is no big fan of the dietary supplement industry, her message of common sense when it comes to health & nutrition is undeniable. Perhaps that’s what America needs, a big does of common sense….now if we could only find a way to get that into a gelcap…

Click here for the Trust for America’s Health press release

Time Magazine Article: The Science of Appetite

Health Ratings by State