As you may have seen on my Instagram stories, I had the opportunity to go to Expo East again this year. Expo East is the fall natural products show from New Hope Network (and the “kid sister” to Expo West.) It’s about half the size of Expo West, but it’s still an awesome opportunity for healthy finds. Check out some of the trends I saw here and on my Instagram stories highlights “Expo East ’19.” And here’s Part 1 of this post.
Day 2 – Friday
Friday, I had the whole day to walk the show. I made a only a few appointments so I decided to walk the rest of the main floor that I missed on Thursday.
Marissa and I hit the tail end of breakfast, so I wound up with 2 pieces of bacon, pineapple slices and a DAHlicious cashew drink. The latter was surprisingly good and luckily filling enough to help me refuel after my 5 mile run before the show.
I quickly walked through some more Hot Products areas that I missed the day before. I saw my friends from Wild Joy Goods (their banana jerky won a Nexty) and The Smart Co (liked the slightly updated branding on their Smart Tarts!) I tried Tama Tea – tea seltzers and sodas were a trend and this one was craft brewed with no added sugar – good stuff. I also tried some superfood drinks from Organifi. I recently tried their yummy Pumpkin Spice tea.
I headed down to walk the “Lifestyle” products. I checked out the new branding and varieties of Each & Every deodorants and tried the new spray on witch hazel deodorants from Thayers. I’m excited to travel with some of these small ones. I grabbed all the samples from Dr. Bronner’s, too.
My friends at MyChelle Beauty gave me their amazing Refining Sugar Cleanser to try with some sets of travel beauty products. I’m so excited to try these great products. I stopped by EO Products and Everyone for Every Body and got some cleansing wipes and deodorant wipes for my travel. I grabbed some Bath Salts from Redmond. I can really use these for marathon season!
I went to meet with Nutiva and tried their Organic MCT Powder with Turmeric and Organic MCT Protein shake. Both were really good. They shared their new squeezable coconut oil packs or (coming soon) avocado oil packs. I can’t wait to try these!
On the way back to Lifestyle, I tried the Fitjoy Grain Free Pretzels that I’ve seen on the ‘gram. Their made with cassava and taste great. I also tried Ripple’s new protein drink. It’s made with pea protein. It’s smooth and very tasty! I professed my love for Gotham Greens’ Vegan Goddess dressing and they gave me some vegan pesto to try!
I decided to take a quick run through Supplements. I met the team from JustThrive and learned about their special probiotic formulations. I got some samples to try. I grabbed some lozenges from Redd and an awesome tote bag from Nordic Naturals.
I went to complete the main show floor. I met the team from Veggiecraft Farms and tried their new plant based, gluten free pasta and rice. They use cauliflower, lentils and peas. The texture and taste are great. (Stay tuned for more on this new brand!) I stopped by Chosen Foods and tried their new salad dressing (coming soon) and professed me love for their flavored avocado sprays – again!
I checked out the new oat bars from Three Bears Oats. These oat based bars are free of the top 14 allergens so they’re great for school snacks. They taste good, too! I stopped by at Navitas Organics and found their new instant lattes. The Cacao and Turmeric Lattes were among my show faves this year! I stopped by to try Sweet Earth’s new POGOs (Power on the Go) which are like healthy, superfood pop tarts. Be on the look out for these in your frozen section soon!
I saw my friends from Lebby snacks and grabbed my fave honey sesame. Be on the look out on the blog for a full review and giveaway soon. I headed over to meet Wedderspoon and checked out their new lozenge flavors (honey and fennel cinnamon) and Propolis Manuka Honey Throat Sprays. I’m excited to try both this winter!
I headed back to the hotel to drop off my bag and took my photo. Then I stopped by Hydroflask for their donation based happy hour for the National Parks. For $10 I got a 16 oz Hydroflask pint glass and the money went to the parks. I skipped the beer but that was included, too.
Day 2 Haul (minus Press Room Happy Hour)
I headed over to the Press Room for Happy Hour. There were representatives from a ton of great brands including my friends from Nordi Chocolate. I met the team from otomat (a gourmet tomato sauce with lots of added nutrients), BeBold (a delicious new refrigerated energy bar from the people behind Stacy’s pita chips), Pure Batch (delicious almond cookies), Ka-Pop (ancient grain chips) and many more!
Day 3 – Saturday
Saturday morning, I joined my friend David’s running group for a 12 mile run just north of the city. Marissa and I strategically packed our bags and I brought David’s family a huge bag of products that were too large to pack or that we couldn’t use. I had just enough room for one more tote bag full of samples.
I won the Women of Expo East Bingo that I showed in my Part 1 recap, so I visited many of the brands to get my prizes. I started with Betsy’s Best to thank her for suggesting that I “play” Bingo. I even made it into her Instagram TV spot! I went by Emmy’s Organics , P.S. Snacks , Soozy’s, Bohana and Siren Snacks. I’m excited to share my winnings.
I chatted with Hippie Snacks – a new brand from Canada. I tried their yummy new Cauliflower Crisps and grabbed some snack mixes. Stay tuned for more from them. I also tried Coolhaus’ new dairy free dessert. It’s made with cocoa butter, pea protein and brown rice. It’s crazy good!
Finally, I swung by to see some friends from brands I love. I stopped by Undercover Quinoa, 88 Acres (they won a Nexty for their Watermelon Butter – enter to win some here through 9/25) and Redd Bar. I tried the new Cinnamon and Matcha Almond Redd Bars – the Cinnamon is my new fave! I stopped by Honey Stinger and learned that they’re the new fuel sponsor for the NYC Marathon – woot! Last but not least, I said hi to Grandy Oats and grabbed my fave Coconola – chocolate chip.
And just like that. It was time to head to the airport!
Day 3 Haul
Which products or trends do you want to see in more detail on the blog?
Stay tuned for my new finds and Finds’ faves giveaways!
Please note: This post contains some Amazon affiliate links. If you use these links, I’ll receive a small commission. Check out many of these and previous finds on my Amazon list!