Another Year of Compassion at the Natural Products Expo West

Nearly 60,000 visitors flocked to Anaheim this past weekend for the Natural Products Expo West — and Compassion Over Killing was there, speaking up for animals! This annual trade show boasts thousands of natural and organic companies, from all over the world, making it a prime location for us to highlight the benefits of choosing animal-friendly foods.

During this three-day event, twelve of our most dedicated volunteers handed out over 3,000 pieces of educational literature including our Vegetarian Guide to Los Angeles, Easy Vegan Recipes booklet, Vegetarian Starter Guides, and more! Many people stopped by to say how happy they were to see us there and they made sure to stock up on our free recipes to share with friends, family, and co-workers.

A favorite among attendees was our Restaurant Management Card. People loved the idea of being able to quickly, easily, and discretely request more veg options when dining out. Our logo t-shirts were also popular and several people stopped by to get one for themselves and a friend.

In between handing out lots of pro-veg information and answering countless questions about the benefits of choosing plant-based foods, we also managed to find time to explore the show in search of the latest and greatest animal-friendly products to hit the market.

We visited our friends at Tofurky who served up another instant hit with their new ground taco-meat. Field Roast was sampling out their amazing new Frankfurters. Everyone fell in love with Food for Lovers’ Chipotle Mayo, and we were in awe over Daiya Food’s brand new selection of delicious “cheese” wedges. We watched Hodo Soy Beanery making VegNews history when they won Best of Show for their Egg-less Egg-Salad. Plus, it was exciting to see Quorn grilling their new Vegan Burgers, thanks to COK’s corporate outreach success.

We also got to meet some of the new kids on the block like Hilary’s Eat Well, StarLite Cuisine and The Elegant Vegan. Be sure to keep an eye out for these fabulous companies and their new products in stores soon.

Hats off to these other great vendors that we visited at the expo:

Savory Samples 

• Eco Vegan (we loved the Blissful Bites)
• Fry’s Vegetarian (vegan Schnitzels)
• Gardein (new Teriyaki Chicken and more)
• Lightlife (tons of new products with vegan options)
• SoL Cuisine (great veggie meats)
• Sophie’s Kitchen (new Crab Cake and Scallops)
• Upton’s Naturals (outstanding line of seitan)
• Vegetarian Plus (wonderful vegan meats)
• Viana (new line of patés)

Sweets and Breakfast Treats 

• Ceres (new vegan jello)
• Cybele’s FREE-to-EAT (delicious allergy-free cookies)
• Eat Pastry (scrumptious new gluten-free selection)
• Fabe’s (great vegan baked goods)
• Hail Merry (delicious nuts, tarts, and more)
• Mary’s Gone Crackers (cookies, crackers, and pretzels)
• Lucy’s (tasty, healthy cookies)
• Purely Elizabeth (new ancient grain granola)
• Rush Bowls (awesome breakfast bowls with coconut and soymilk)
• Sjaak’s (amazing vegan chocolate selection)

Vegan Dairy and Drinks

• Earth Balance (new Coconut Peanut Butter)
• Follow Your Heart (a line of new vegan sauces and spreads)
• Galaxy Nutritional Food (new vegan shreds)
• Harvest Award Spreads (decadent buttery spread)
• MimicCreme (a great line of nut-based creams)
• Teeccino  (herbal coffees)
• Vega (vegan supplements and shakes)
• WholeSoy & Co. (new Keylime flavored soy-yogurt)

With a bag full of vegan goodies and a stack of empty literature boxes, we knew it was time to head home. But we couldn’t resist indulging in one more sample of Chicago Vegan Foods’ Temptation Soft Serve.

It’s encouraging to see dozens and dozens of new vegan products being introduced into the marketplace — and how popular these items were at Expo. It’s yet one more example that vegan eating is continuing to gain momentum — and that it’s never been easier or more delicious to choose compassion at every meal.

Want to get involved?

Here are 3 easy steps to get started:

• Leave a comment at WeLoveSubway.com or DunkinCruelty.com, and help us make cruelty-free options accessible to millions.
• Email us to volunteer—you can do it from any city, with any schedule.
• Sign up for our Los Angeles eNews to stay in touch and learn about more opportunities.