Trends & Observations From Expo West 2025

1. Mega-Trend: Functional Foods/Beverages – we’re fortifying everything these days including stacking multiple functional benefits in many products:

1. Protein is in everything including sparkling water & candy.

   • Not a lot of new protein sources were seen though. Some that seemed to help address the flavor and texture tradeoffs of traditional plant-based protein sources were fava bean and mung bean

     • Mung bean protein being used in Kevin Hart’s new VitaHustle protein powder

     • Cargill shared some new products using fava bean protein

     • ChagaRoot Mycoprotein protein powder

     • Given the current egg situation, we were surprised we didn’t see more egg replacements… seems like a great opportunity to capitalize on.

       1. A few egg replacements were seen at the show (e.g. WunderEggs and JUST)

       2. Onego fermented egg protein seemed to be the most novel

2. Increasing prominence of Mood Enhancement benefits delivered via adaptogens & nootropics.

• Mushrooms’ 15 minutes of fame continues to extend with various mushrooms being used in all sorts of products: Healthee Mushroom Milk Tea In The Zone Chocolates

2. Dates are on the rise – expansion of use as a sweetener in more products but also as a snack: True Dates

3. Pistachios are the new almond

• Pistachio coffee, pistachio butter, pistachio cream, and of course pistachio flavored chocolate (Dubai trend!) and creamers

4.  Flavor Expansion:

• More heat / Bolder flavors – especially in snacks

• Kimchi and beyond! Asian flavors, foods, and fermentation were everywhere

  • Korean Street Food (with a plant-based twist from Pulmuone

  • Fermented sauces, pickles, tempeh chips!

5. Are Oats the new Super Grain? Many products were touting the power of oats and showcasing their versatility beyond milk replacements:

• Oat butter as a nut butter replacement

• Overnight oats in new forms like chocolate-coated refrigerated bars, see Mush and Mooski

• Made Good Canada Oat cups for kids

• Bob’s Red Mill Protein Oats

6. Regenerative Agriculture becoming more prominent

• There’s a new set of “no, no, no’s” like no glyphosates, mycotoxins with increased transparency in batch test results: Zego mueslix

• Improved traceability of ingredients back to farms

7. Nostalgia & Retro looks are in with modern benefits

• Hey Day Canning - taking canned goods to a new level by focusing on modern day benefits that matter: convenience, plant-based protein and fiber (bean-based products)

• Slice soda is back with prebiotics, probiotics & postbiotics

• Seattle Chocolate's groovy re-branding to sustainably sourced Maeve