• 😐 Nat. Bev. Reports ‘Challenging’ Q3
• 🤝 Sarah Shah Launches New Agency
• 🪧 UNFI Teamsters Practice Picketing
• ⁉️ What Did You Miss From Expo West?

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Our reporters are back from California with thick notebooks in tow, as we’re just starting to dig into the trove of new products, redesigns, reformulations and brand updates from last week’s insane-as-ever Natural Products Expo West show. Expect more brand updates, trend stories, video interviews and product galleries to follow this week, but will start off Monday with some all-important hydration news for thirsty readers:

❤️ It was hard to miss Be Love last week in Anaheim: the new canned electrolyte drink from Vital Proteins founder Kurt Seidensticker prominently announced its debut on ads splashed across the convention center and a Diplo-hosted after party. We have the details (on the drink, that is).

🚰 PATH’s concept of packaging water in refillable aluminum bottles has proved a hit since the company launched in 2015 — but what’s next? We got a very early first look at innovation slated for 2026.

🏀 With Logan Paul’s PRIME piling up problems, Plezi is ready to unleash perhaps its highest-profile celebrity backer in a bid to capture thirsty teenage athletes.

We’re also tracking the latest developments outside the bottle, including new growth capital:

⛰️ We spoke with fast-growing natural energy drink Huxley about how slight tweaks in messaging have helped the Minneapolis-based brand “easily achieve” its seed round goals.

🛒 Will Heywell switch up its “slow and thoughtful” approach to building awareness after closing on investment? We asked co-founder Ashley Selman.

Read the full Expo West recaps – with more updates on brands like Leisure Hydration, Violife and Cali Water – here and here.

A slight decline in net sales due to flat year-over-year net income contributed to the “challenging” results posted by LaCroix sparkling water producer National Beverage Corp. Here are the numbers:

• Net sales were $267 million in Q3, compared to $270 million in the prior year period.
• Net income rose to $39.6 million versus $39.5 during the same period last year.
• Operating profit increased 5% to $51 million.

“Historically, our performance in the third quarter has been challenging given the unknown predictability of winter weather patterns,” a company spokesperson said citing the impact of the Southern California fires and severe weather in the Midwest and Northeast.

Longtime CPG marketer Sarah Shah is launching her own consulting agency, The In-Between.

• She aims to provide an “insights driven, consumer-centric approach” to support entrepreneurial brands.
• Shah has over two decades of experience, including roles at Vitaminwater, The Dannon Company, AccelFoods, Maya Kaimal Foods, Canidae and most recently Just Ice Tea.

💬 “I’m proudly already representing two incredible clients,” Shah wrote on LinkedIn last week. “If you are looking for a real partner in your brand agency or want to be a part of bringing the next great water brand to America, courtesy of our friends from the North, hit me up!”

New Beverage Showdown Winner, Recoup, will be sampling their delicious, sparkling "Gut Healthy Hydration" beverages at booth #N1529. Crafted with electrolytes, prebiotics, and ginger with no added sugar or stevia, Recoup delivers restorative refreshment with a ginger kick. Learn more

Teamsters members at UNFI in Florida, Georgia and Illinois are gearing up for a real deal strike by hosting practice pickets.

📈 The workers are demanding “fair first contracts that recognize their crucial role to the company’s success,” the union said in a press release.

🤝 Over 5,000 UNFI employees are members of the Teamsters. The potential strike comes after a robust unionization effort across UNFI, with more than 2,500 drivers and warehouse workers from the company joining the Teamsters since 2022.

The BevNET and Nosh team has been busy pumping out insights from the industry’s biggest show. While you were busy putting together booths, slinging samples or scouring the show floor yourself, you may have missed out on some of our coverage of the show. Here’s a quick guide on what’s up:

🫦 Pre-Show Samples: A first look at new products from Vita Coco, Topo Chico, Califia, MALK and more; why Bloom is expanding into the RTD prebiotic soda space; why St. James is pivoting on packaging and a look at Jordan’s Skinny Mixes’ first RTD innovation; and inside the acceleration of A2 dairy. 

🔬 During Expo Analysis: After each day the team debriefed what they saw, sampled and heard from the show including yerba mate’s moment and Eclipse’s pivot from pints to plant-milk on day one. By day two, Huxley and Heywell’s investment were talk of the town and BEAM refreshed its RTD Be Amazing brand. 

📹 Live From Anaheim: Watch our editors rundown each main day of the show. First up was discussions of tariffs and product trends. The following day, the duo got serious about MAHA’s presence, DEI initiatives and…. chicken schmaltz. Check them out now. 

⏩ Continuing Coverage: Just like that stack of contacts you’ll be sorting through and following up on in the weeks to come, the fun doesn’t end when the Expo doors close. Our team will continue to publish post-show analysis and release exclusive interviews from the floor. Stay in the know and access all of our Expo West coverage here.