Does tasting an unreleased velvety oat milk-based nondairy whipped cream months before it hits supermarket shelves excite you? Then you were probably one of the 67 thousand registered attendees who took home at least 50 pounds of free samples each day at the world's biggest natural products expo, Expo West. For one week a year, over 3,000 brands associated with natural products invade Anaheim's Convention Center. It is the spot to be if you work in any kind of retail or food company since the event attracts international buyers from prestigious supermarkets worldwide, scouting out the food, drink, and health supplement companies for items to stock their highly coveted shelf space. It's also the spot to be if you are in hardcore food nerd and work in media, like us.
Every year reveals a new trend in American retail foodways. For example, years before oat milk started to overtake almond milk in the alternative milk world, attendees at Expo West knew that would happen by simply attending and seeing the trend before the rest of the world. This year, we noticed a lot of non-alcoholic wines and canned cocktails, including non-alcoholic liquor alternatives (each liquor—whether it was tequila, bourbon, or rum, frankly tasted like significantly watered-down liquor left out overnight). Other trends we noticed were a surplus of vegan cultured cream cheeses.
The expo has gained a reputation for the insane amount of swag that this billion-dollar industry gives out to attendees. Sometimes entire packages of gluten-free flax muffins, whole boxes of chocolate bars, and so much damn more.
Expo West is a trade-only event, so it is not open to the public. You must work in the products or industry to attend. That being said, these were the foods and drinks that stood out the most this year.
All photos by Javier Cabral for L.A. TACO.