Industry executives from dietary supplement, food and beverage, cosmetic and personal care, and pharmaceutical companies gathered April 27 to 29 at the Meadowlands Exposition Center in Secaucus, NJ, for SupplySide East. More than 3,000 professionals participated, including first-time attendance from companies including McDonald’s, Revlon and Sara Lee.
“With the current economic climate, many industries are reporting declining participation at their events; but, we are pleased SupplySide East 2009 drew so many industry giants, many of them first-time attendees, in search of ingredients, services, ideas and education,” said Peggy Jackson, director of publishing, health & nutrition division, Virgo Publishing, Phoenix.
Participants included teams from Colgate-Palmolive, Kraft Foods, Mars Chocolate, McNeil Nutritionals, Unilever and many other companies. Catherine Anaya, U.S. Menu Management, McDonald’s USA LLC, said: “It was an amazing show and well put together. I’ll definitely attend again next year.”
The two-day exhibit hall, open April 28 and 29, featured hundreds of companies offering cutting-edge ingredients and technologies with food, beverage, cosmetic, personal care and dietary supplement applications. Vitamins, herbs, flavors, sweeteners, probiotics, omega 3s and many more food ingredients were available.
Exhibitors also continued to realize the value in SupplySide East. “Kyowa Hakko usually has a uniquely productive show at SupplySide East,” said Neil Sullivan, director of sales. “We find that many prospective and current clients will stop by and have specific goals to accomplish in Secaucus. It’s a business show where we get a lot of things done, and some new things started.”
Monday saw the opening of the three-day education program, which was expanded this year to offer more than 30 total sessions and a focused food and beverage track, sponsored by Sabinsa. “This is a valuable and interesting segment for SupplySide,” said Jim Cudahy, president, Sabinsa. “And we certainly encourage those to take advantage of the knowledge that is shared by these speakers.” A new cosmeceutical track was sponsored by AAK, with EPAX sponsoring the nutrition education track. Presenters from American Dairy Queen Corp., Datamonitor, Euromonitor International, The Hartman Group, Harvard University Medical School, Mintel, Red Bull North America and many more companies and associations spoke during the program.
Obviously, food safety has been on the industry’s mind, making the presentation from Nicole Butterfass, Dairy Queen, on steps food producers and foodservice professionals can take to help reduce the chance of foodborne illness, quite timely. In addition to offering a historical look at food-safety issues, Butterfass also provided a behind-the-scenes look at Dairy Queen’s initiatives in its processing facilities and restaurants as examples of steps producers and professionals in the food industry might take.
Another hot topic has been stevia, now elevated from humble South American plant to the newest option in the sweetener toolbox, particularly as formulators turn to combinations of ingredients to deliver optimal taste profiles. Robert McQuate, GRAS Associates, noted in his talk that there are major product-development initiatives underway beyond the beverage aisle, expanding into dairy, cereal and confectionery, with a “flood” of new products expected by 2010. Further, technological advances, including enzymatic modification of stevia (to enhance taste and sweetness qualities) and a host of flavor initiatives, will continue to expand the profile of the sweeteners. He concluded by noting there is great potential ahead, provided the industry “maintains a strong emphasis on production of high-purity stevia-derived sweeteners while preserving strict quality-control procedures.”
Arwen Kimmell, The Hartman Group, discussed trends in healthy eating, including the impact of managing health conditions and life stages, as well as perceptions of what “healthy” really entails. Interestingly, households managing many different health conditions are less likely to view healthy eating as important; however, those who see healthy eating as important tend to believe diet can improve or maintain good health. Kimmell noted top ingredients on the radars of healthy eaters are probiotics, omega-3 fatty acids, and plant stanols and sterols.
Some of the most-profitable interactions in business can come during social interactions, which is one of the reasons why networking is a key component of any trade show—and SupplySide East 2009 was no different. As with past years, the event was kicked off with the Golf Classic, an 18-hole, best-ball tournament cosponsored by Marco Hi-Tech and
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and held at Green Brook Country Club. Marco’s sponsorship of the tournament once again provided the opportunity to get out on the greens. David Garner, a partner in Marco Hi-Tech, said the tournament’s sunny skies and cheerful networking set the stage for a successful show. “We enjoy working with Virgo Publishing on the SupplySide East Golf Classic, and enjoy the opportunity to connect with our industry colleagues,” he said.On Monday, the SupplySide Happy Hour drew participants for appetizers and networking. The SupplySide LinkedIn group met during the event for an in-person meet and greet. The Opening Reception was held Tuesday, April 28 in the exhibit hall during the last hour and a half of exhibit hall hours. Participants enjoyed cocktails and complimentary food. On the last day of the show, the Appreciation Reception, co-sponsored by Kyowa and
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, offered a hosted bar and food stations on the exhibit floor.SupplySide East 2010 is scheduled for April 26 to 28 in Secaucus, NJ.