Another great year in the books for the Summer Fancy Food Show held at the Javits Center in New York City. I only had time for 1 day this year, but managed to hit almost every aisle. By the end of the day I walked about 8.5 miles…. not bad, snacked along the way too! ;)

As always there are so many innovative and amazing products being introduced and displayed at the show. Things already on shelves and items just being released. I could write a novel if I discussed every single item I saw from National to International! My post will consist of some of my personal highlights and products that peaked my interest.

I started the morning with breakfast; booth #274 had fresh, tasty Mina shakshuka at the ready. Sunny egg with dipping bread! The shakshuka was hot, a little kick at the end, but a great earthy flavor. This product was made by Casablanca Foods. They also had harissa to try but I had a lot of things ahead of me.

I came across a lot of companies selling coconut water, which has its audience (not me) but there was 1 company Eliya that had a great presentation with the slickest bottle I’ve seen. Very dynamic and peaked my interest to try their coconut water. Other than coconut water there was a spike in oxygenated water brands showing. Being an avid exerciser I’ve seen and read about these brands but never decided to try them. I know it has its benefits, it’s better for you than Gatorade, but I still need to do more research on my part.

On the topic of drinks, today’s consumers are drinking less alcohol. The market for non-alcoholic drinks is climbing. Consumers want to enjoy the drink, socialize, and not leave with a buzz. The show usually has companies promoting their drink mixers, but also a handful of companies were playing off the flavorful drinks without the alcohol. One company showing was called Mingle Mocktails. I believe they were at the show before? Either way, this is a great time to be in the market. Their flavors were great and I felt worked really well in this marketplace. Also their drinks are available on Amazon!! Perfect for our generation. A new vendor showcasing their sparkling drink was Spindrift Beverage Co. Again, a great stand along sparkling water with real fruit. Their website does offer drink recipes but this can be consumed as is. I tried it and really loved the flavors they offered.

The list goes on with drink vendors, coconut water, and cold brew coffee. If I had more time I would love to talk more about the drinks.

Overall I’m a healthy conscience eater and I do love cauliflower. So it was exciting to see the company Caulipower at the show. I believe they have showed in the past. I got to try their pizza and chicken tenders, boy were they amazing! Coming to stores in September, I think they are going to do really well. I highly recommend checking out their products. YUMM.

Some buzz words shown around the show were KETO, Protein! Nothing wrong with that, and they were great products to back up the names. These products relate really well to today’s consumers so it is important to see those and try them. Dang Foods was premiering their new keto bar which was amazing. The right chewy texture and bite your looking for. Will keep you full and feeling good. A product under Elma Farms was The Protein Ball Co. Again that was really tasty. A good amount of chewiness and flavor. To wrap up my post I was lucky enough to try BNutty! Beyond peanut butter, gourmet peanut butter. I had irresistible pretzel and was hooked. Check these guys out!

Already planning for next year. If you want me to come by your booth and check out your latest products just let me know. In the meantime, send me an email or connect on LinkedIN!

-Felicia

https://www.specialtyfood.com/shows-events/summer-fancy-food-show/

https://www.casablancafoods.com/products/mina-shakshuka-16oz

https://www.eliyanyc.com/

https://www.drinkoxigen.com/

https://www.minglemocktails.com/

https://spindriftfresh.com/

https://eatcaulipower.com/

https://dangfoods.com/

http://www.elmafarms.com/

https://www.bnutty.com/

Felicia Perretti is a commercial food and beverage photographer and director based in New York City. She works nationally with food and beverage clients in advertising, packaging, editorial, and video. She has worked with food and drink in all shapes and knows how to craft the right team to get the job done! Her passion for food and beverage shine through on set as well as outside of work in her everyday life. Whether it’s trying new restaurants, traveling, or cooking with her husband Joe. Send her an email or give a call to discuss your next project, she would be more than happy to chat!

Another year has come and gone for the Fancy Food Show in New York City. Every year there is so much buzz and energy going through the aisles showing new foods, trends, making connections, and seeing old faces. It’s such a well organized and well attended event I always look forward to writing my follow up posts.
   The show comes at a unique time with the huge shake up of Amazon with Whole Foods. Some say it’s a double edged sword with this deal and the show did feel an impact. The idea of efficiency at the supermarket could disrupt the shelf space for potential food suppliers making competition more fierce. On the other hand this could open opportunities for brick and mortar as well as online retail space. Still early so we will see how things unfold!
   My time at the Fancy Food show was a long and exciting Monday and into Tuesday afternoon catching up on aisles I may have missed. The layout of the show this year was a little different but in a good way because it was bigger. I always keep an open mind when looking into new products and seeing how innovative people are. One item I came across that really impressed me was The Matzo Project. I have some jewish food clients and I’ve had my fair share of matzo, but when I tried their version is was amazing. None of the dried out taste you get in traditional matzo. This was much more like a cracker and a very tasty one at that. Please check these guys out, amazing! https://www.matzoproject.com/
   A poppy brand and nostalgic taste it was exciting to run into Megpie’s Booth. They are New York based but have made the leap in expanding. I know I’ve seen their colorful treats at my local Starbucks but was great to see them at the show too. I tried their blueberry tart which was oh so good. Immediately I felt like a kid again. Really if your looking to enjoy poptarts as an adult this is your breakfast or snack on the go choice. https://www.megpies.com/
   Another local find was actually a friend and food stylist I know Olivia Marjoram. She has her very own hand made oatmeal cookies and sweets. The cookies have a great crunch to them and not too heavy. I could have one with ice-cream or even my morning coffee; yum! You can buy them direct from her site or find a some local shops here: http://olivias-kitchen.com/
   Miyoko’s Kitchen was a stellar product I came across down stairs. I had a couple booths upstairs raving about it! All the products are vegan but you wouldn’t know it by looking at it. Miyoko Schinner set out to make the best vegan products possible to help that craving of butter and cheese. She had her first success with her book Artisan Vegan Cheese back in 2012. From that point she has produced and sold her product across the country. It was great to have her in NY showing off her amazing products. http://miyokoskitchen.com/
   Now I did not get to try this product because the line was really long probably because they had an eye-catching booth and packaging. Also a ton of energy from the staff at the booth. Checking out their produce online it really looks like a all in one stop and shop quality hot dog. I really enjoy the packaging and simple approach to the concept. If you did get to try the hot dog I would love to hear about it. If you want to check it out here is where you can purchase it today: https://denshotdogs.com/#@wheretobuy

Can’t wait till next year; let me know if you will be in attendance and will try to stop by your booth.