Every year, Pollock Communications attends the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo™ (FNCE®) to represent several of our clients and see what’s new in the food and nutrition world. We love FNCE because it’s the high school reunion of food and nutrition professionals filled with hugging friends and reunited colleagues.
Here are four things we were most excited about at FNCE…
1. Hashtags & Selfies
The #selfie is here to stay. With a greater focus on social media, FNCE® hallways were lined with selfie stations ready for attendees to strike a pose and post away! Expo exhibitors, such as California Almonds, also joined the social media action with their own hashtags and interactive experiences that helped them speak with attendees both in person and online. We loved their vending machine where you pay with a tweet instead of a dollar.
2. Snack Attack
The art of snacking is an evolving trend with the latest being “subscription snacking,” with snacks delivered to your door on a regular basis. Not only is how we get our snacks changing, but we also saw many new and interesting snacks popping up. What snacks caught our eye?
- Half-popped popcorn from NatureBox and Nourish Snacks, which provide a savory whole grain snack to crunch on.
- Hummus from Eat Well Embrace Life with expanding ingredients, such as carrots and beets.
- Savory (not sweet) KIND bars to fill the gaps between meals.
3. Labels
More and more, consumers are empowered to better understand what is in their food, and labels are their key to knowing. Nutrition Facts Panels and ingredient lists are label staples, but dietitians and consumers want to know more – gluten-free, GMOs, organic are all high on people’s radars.
4. Back to Nature
Several exhibitors were getting back to their roots in the expo. Campbell’s soup highlighted their farm-grown vegetables and the state of Georgia was proud to show off their state-grown crops from peaches to pecans.
As always, FNCE® is an important gauge for what is going on in the food industry. We were excited to see evolving trends and hear directly from registered dietitians about what is important to them and their clients.
At Pollock Communications, we know that developing and maintaining a strong relationships with key influencers is crucial to communicating our clients’ messages and achieving their goals. Creating a memorable presence at healthcare professional conferences is just one of the ways that we do this. For more information on how we can help build your healthcare professional outreach program, contact us.