Natural Products Industry News Briefs: SCS, Natural Grocers, Dr. Bronner's & More

Natural Grocers Hosts Fourth Annual Bonanza

From May 9-31, Natural Grocers will be treating shoppers to its Fourth Annual Body Care & Beauty Bonanza event. Centered around "spring cleaning" your personal care routine, the natural and organic grocer will offer customers free body care and beauty samples in addition to 30% off on natural hygiene and beauty essential products. On May 9th, the first 50 customers that stopped by the body care and beauty aisles of participating locations received a reusable bag with samples from some of the best-selling body care and beauty brands. 

SCS Becomes Certification Body for Proposition 12

Third-party environmental, sustainability, food safety and quality certification service provider, SCS Global Services, has been approved to offer Proposition 12 Certification by the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA). The proposition, also known as the Farm Animal Confinement Initiative, is aimed towards improving the living conditions of farm animals throughout the state of California.

Currently, SCS offers agricultural certification services for USDA Organic, Non-GMO Project, Gluten Free, food safety certifications such as GLOBALG.A.P., PrimusGFS, and SQF, and a variety of sustainable agricultural certifications. As a certification body for Proposition 12, SCS will verify compliance with its requirements which states that all producers of egg-laying hens, breeding pigs, and/or veal calves, as well as distributors of covered products intended for sale in California, possess a valid certificate of compliance.

Continental Fresh Collaborates with Viewpoint Project

Hosted by actor Dennis Quaid, the Viewpoint Project is Public Television programming focused on the development and distribution of social and educational programming. The collaboration with Continental Fresh will focus on corporate social responsibility and create awareness for the dynamics of the food supply chain. Continental Fresh Founder and CEO, Albert Perez, shared his enthusiasm for the partnership: “Our collaboration with Viewpoint with Dennis Quaid allows us to reach a broader audience with our story, impacting lives outside of the produce supply chain.”

C.A. Fortune Hosts Third BUILD Tank Event

Consumer brand sales and marketing agency C.A. Fortune hosted eight of its clients for its third annual BUILD Tank event. Part of the agency's up-and-coming brand solutions package, which includes brand incubation, client strategy, sales management, marketing and branding, and retail activation, the function invites industry buyers from retailers like Whole Foods, Kroger, and Sprouts to evaluate packaging and overall quality of small food and beverage brands hoping to ink distribution deals in their stores. Meagen Arensdorff, VP of C.A. Fortune's BUILD team, explained the company's objective with hosting the yearly event: “We want our brands to leave the event with direct, honest and useful constructive criticism."

Voyage Foods Keeps Raising Funding

Voyage Foods, Bay Area manufacturer of cocoa-free chocolate, bean-free coffee, and nut-free spreads, has raised a total of $94 million after its latest collection of $52 million. Initial investments from Level One Fund and Horizons Ventures, SOSV, Collaborative Fund, and Nimble Partners, have all contributed to the brands recent success, which includes a nationwide launch with Walmart in Fall 2023 and an exclusive global agreement with Cargill to supply commercial/B2B customers. With supply chain disruption incidents becoming more frequent and cocoa prices seeing a 250% price increase over the last year, the company says its partnership with Cargill has proven to be financially beneficial to major food companies looking to cocoa-free products as suitable enjoyable alternatives for consumers. 

Kerry Group Introduces Digital Innovation Hub

Kerry Group is launching a one-stop-shop for its customers to access clinical research, trade insight, and other key industry information for its digestive health, immune health, women's & infant health, and cognitive health solutions. The supplements digital innovation hub will house video interviews from scientists and subject matter experts, global research covering consumer preferences in supplements and taste preferences, clinical studies for Kerry's ingredients, and offer solution tools like sell sheets and brochures for the brands proactive health ingredients. 

Bronner Haus & Dr. Bronner's Museum Grand Opening

Laupheim Germany will host members of the Dr. Bronner leadership team and members of the Bronner family to celebrate the opening of the Bronner Haus & Dr. Bronner's Museum. From May 28-29, guests can stop by the Bronner family home—where the first family branded soaps were made in 1858 and learn more about the brands history and its vision for the future. The building was purchased by the company back in 2017 and underwent a two year renovation process that began in 202 and included the construction of a new glass facade imprinted with messages representing the brand and its mission.

Fermentalg Partners with HuveNutra

Fermentalg and HuveNutra promoted their new partnership at Vitafoods Europe 2024 in Geneva, Switzerland. Looking to address the worldwide consumption shortage of omega-3 fatty acids, the partnership will mark the establishment of the only algae-based omega-3 producer in the European Union, according to a press release. “Together with HuveNutra, we are becoming a serious alternative to existing Algal omega-3 leaders producing outside Europe offering flexibility and proximity for all omega-3 specific application fields including aquafeed and pet food.” commented Pierre Josselin, CEO of Fermentalg, of the new joint venture.

Sirio Pharma Posts Record-Breaking Sales

Global nutraceutical contract development and manufacturing organization, Sirio Pharma, officially announced its revenues at this year's Vitafoods Europe event in Geneva, Switzerland. The company's overall turnover has risen to $508 million during 2023, up 42.87% year-on-year, with its international sales having an annual increase of 70.40% making up 48.33% of the overall revenue and domestic sales growing to $263 million, up 24.11% in 2023. 

Sara Lesina, General Manager Sirio Europe & Americas, shared her thoughts on the company's rapid financial growth: “It’s been an outstanding year for Sirio. We have greatly strengthened and deepened our key partnerships while also helping many new brands to quickly launch novel nutraceutical formulations."

Best in the West Debuts New Mexico Hatch Chile

Best in the West has formed a new foodservice division to premiere its shelf-stable New Mexico Hatch chile at this year's National Restaurant Association show. Hatch chiles are grown in the Hatch Valley of New Mexico and recently gained popularity due to its smoky flavor and versatility despite being difficult to preserve and ship. The new foodservice division will look to address those issues through the company's proprietary system that uses a unique packaging system to produce farm-fresh, shelf-stable products that maintain the chile's quality from farm to shipping. With plans to produce the markets only organic Hatch chile, Best in the West will look to its recently completed processing facility in Deming, NM to achieve authentic products at scale.