• 💡 NIQ: Mid-Year RTD Report
• 🧬 Investors Bet on Pro-GMOs
• 🧑‍⚖️ Albertsons' Pro-Merger Argument
• 🥤 Drink Todo Adds NutriFusion Power

Hi, Monica Watrous here, managing editor of Nosh, reporting in with top takeaways from the inaugural Newtopia Now event. When New Hope Network announced last fall it was sunsetting Natural Products Expo East and launching a new event in its place, we all had questions. Namely, what is a ‘Newtopia,’ and why ‘Now’? 

Early pivots leading up to the show contributed to the confusion. Like its location, date and duration. (It was originally set to take place over three days in Savannah, Ga., in early August; it was then moved to later in the month for a two-day span in Denver, Colo.). 

As such, many in the industry took a wait-and-see approach on whether to attend or exhibit at the inaugural Newtopia Now. For those of you who missed it, here’s what went down.

With an estimated 7,500 registered attendees and 550 exhibiting companies, the vibe was low-key and intimate. We overheard an exhibitor call it “chill but quality.” Several described the event as “Expo West without the riff raff.” As in, a way less congested show with a higher ratio of retail buyers to salespeople and sample scavengers.

Several folks told me they were impressed by the quality of booth interactions. Think: Ten-minute conversations (and, in some cases, repeat visits with colleagues in tow) versus hurried, distracted encounters or missed connections. 

Newtopia Now was designed in the style of a UNFI or KeHE show and offered a much smaller selection of tabletop and booth options (the largest display was 10-feet-by-20-feet). The floor was organized into sections, or “neighborhoods”: Thrive, Regenerate, Glow and Represent. Each area had its own stage with educational sessions related to its respective theme.

Granted, there were hiccups in the first year. A selling point of the conference was one-to-one meetings with buyers that exhibitors were required to schedule ahead of the show through a mobile app. Several said they experienced issues with the app or with buyers not responding to meeting requests.

A handful of exhibitors also lamented that the layout of the show floor obscured some booths from the flow of traffic. But mostly, the reception was positive – with the exception of one person who told me she “hated it” and it was a waste of time and money – several confirmed they are planning to return next year to the event, which will be held again in August in Denver. 

(Did you attend Newtopia Now? Or were you on the fence, and why? Will you check it out next year? Share all of your thoughts with me at mwatrous@nosh.com)

Ready-to-drink (RTD) off-premise sales surpassed $13 billion in the 52-week period ending July 13, up 4% year-over-year, according to a mid-year report from market research firm NIQ. So within RTDs, what’s up, what’s down? 

• Spirits-based RTDs continue to gain share at hard seltzer's expense, meanwhile FMBs have surpassed hard seltzer’s share.
•  In terms of format, cans make the majority of dollar share. Growth has dipped for 12-packs and 6-packs. 
• On the flip side, single-serve, 8-packs, and 24-packs are picking up steam.

🍸 While we talk about alcohol bases quite a bit, as the category matures many consumers are less concerned about the alcohol base of RTDs and are instead drawn to flavors, cocktail varieties, and the convenience of consumption, according to the report. 

Insiders can access the full category insights by checking out the story on BevNET.

Non-GMO? No, GMOs! That’s the attitude of genetically modified probiotics brand ZBiotics, which announced the close of a $12 million Series A round this week, and intends to use the financing to expand its line of pre-alcohol shots intended to help consumers prepare before a night of drinking.

💸 The oversubscribed funding round was led by Spring Tide Capital, with participation from several other firms including Access Capital, Seamless Capital, Goat Rodeo Capital and Seaside Ventures.

🥂 The hangover prevention shot is ZBiotics first go-to-market product for consumers, but the company sees its modified probiotics as its true standard bearer and is developing a variety of products with different use cases. One new item targeting gut health is expected in the coming weeks, they said.

🦹 But wait, aren’t GMOs bad? ZBiotics is certainly working to reopen that debate by being “proudly GMO” and “prioritizing transparency.” It’s not the first time a brand has sought to counterprogram anti-GMO sentiment – back in the late 2010s Soylent mounted a campaign to brand itself as Pro-GMO, though it walked that stance back after a change in leadership.

The hearing on the FTC’s attempt to temporarily block the proposed $24.6 billion merger between Kroger and Albertsons kicked off on Monday and so far, the grocer’s opening arguments have painted a bleak picture about what will happen if the deal doesn’t go through.

🗣 Albertsons told a federal judge on Monday that if the deal is blocked, it could result in layoffs and closed stores, claiming the grocery chain doesn’t have the wholesale power to compete with giants like Walmart and Costco on price. The team argued that the fate of the broader grocery market will be much worse off without the deal than with it.

👀 Kroger promised that it would not close any stores or lay off any frontline workers should the deal close. The grocer also said it would invest “billions of dollars” over the next few years to renovate stores and lower prices. 

🛒 Meanwhile, the FTC argued the deal would eliminate competition between Kroger and Albertsons which shoppers and union workers rely on “in one fell swoop.” The agency also slammed Kroger’s plan to divest nearly 600 stores and other assets to C&S Wholesale Grocers, a move made to appease antitrust regulators reviewing the deal. 

Catch up on the latest in the grocery store saga.

Meal replacement brand Drink Todo has partnered with ingredient provider NutriFusion to bring the company’s concentrated micronutrient and phytonutrient-food blend to its line of fruit, vegetable and adaptogen-packed smoothies. 

💪 Drink Todo’s milk-based shakes contain 25 grams of protein and 6 grams of fiber including 57% of a person’s recommended daily intake of calcium and 21% of iron. 

🥦 The fiber content is derived from a blend of spinach, broccoli, kale, pumpkin, chlorella, sweet potato, cranberries, shiitake and maitake mushrooms and sunflower seeds and the drinks also contain prebiotics and antioxidants.

🥬 NutriFusion’s signature GrandFusion blend contains 21 fruit and vegetables and is made with non-GMO and natural ingredients.