Expo East 2009 Boston: True Foodie Fun

This past weekend I was given the exciting opportunity to attend Expo East, a massive event showcasing the newest natural, organic, and healthy products, from food to supplements and household cleaning products. My new pal Keith from Stevia in the Raw VERY generously offered some vendor passes to Funk and I, as well as foodie friend Elizabeth to attend this (outrageously expensive) event for free! I jumped at the chance and even had to wiggle out of some existing plans to go - this event was not to be missed!

When Funk and I arrived we dilly dallied through the rows of supplements and herbs, where one guy infuriated me by telling me that, "Americans don't get enough protein," and then completely incorrectly quoted how much protein I'd need while trying to promote his protein-jacked beverage. I walked away before I started a scene, and was glad I did because we found ourselves in the many aisles and aisles of amazing food products. I even ran into Diet Sarah, who you might recognize from the diet.com videos I've been in!

We were in the Disney World for foodies, surrounded by big brands like Kashi, Stonyfield, Larabars, Odwalla, and Clif. There were also numerous new products launching and this was where they (hopefully) brought on new buyers. It was exciting to see the food trends of the year, which I think were definitely gluten free products that actually tasted good, coconut water (my favorite for triathlon and 1/2 marathon training!), a wide variety of teas, and bars. Lots and lots of bars with recognizable, whole ingredients like nuts an dried fruit.

We also enjoyed our fair share of chips like brown rice chips, red bean chips, and popped chips. I'll be blogging soon about some Hippie Chips that I loved! About halfway through the expo Funk and I were FULL! You'd be surprised how fast all those itsy bitsy bites add up in your stomach!

We probably could have spent days at Expo East learning about all of the upcoming products, many of which are being sold at Whole Foods, but many also sold at standard local grocery stores like Hannafords and Stop and Shop. We walked out of there with three big tote bags stuffed to the brim with products to sample. It was like Halloween for foodies. I'm pretty sure the treats will even last me until next year's Expo East!