Once a year The Canadian Health Food Association (CHFA) hosts their annual conference downtown Toronto. It’s a chance to connect with others in the industry and see what’s what in health. I refer to CHFA conference as my Christmas because of all the freebies! It is the best day (weekend) of the year when you work in the health industry. Over 850 vendors, new products and TONS, TONS and TONS of free samples. This exclusive event is not open to the public either so I feel extra special getting an invite. It is open to anyone who works in the industry- retailer, nutritionist, fitness and manufacturer.
I missed out at attending CHFA East last year because I had just given birth to my little guy a couple of days before. So I have been eagerly counting down the days until the next conference for the past two years. It was well worth the wait as it did not disappoint.
My weekend at CHFA East.
Let me start by saying these are only a small sample of my highlights. I would probably go on forever and no one wants to read a 10 page blog post….
I started my day bright and early by getting downtown Toronto by 7:45 am to attend the Lorna Vanderhaeghe breakfast: What’s HOT in Women’s Nutritional Supplements in 2017. I am a HUGE fan of this product line which focuses on women’s hormone issues including menopause, estrogen dominance, stubborn weight loss and skin care (from the inside out). But best of all her products work! I think I own half her product line.
So what’s hot right now according to Lorna Vanderhaeghe? Collagen and prebiotics (the food for the probiotics- everybody has got to eat). Which is really what’s HOT on the market right now so she’s bang on by saying that. Collagen is that elastic in our skin preventing it from sagging over time. Collagen disappears as we age (it starts decreasing after 30!). Most people reach for creams to keep their skin looking great. But I personally think that creams and potions are a waste of money (after dealing with my hormonal acne for years) so the biggest shift for me is scribing to the belief that we need to treat our skin from the inside out. The skin is our body’s largest organ and it’s a direct reflection of what’s happening inside.
After breakfast we hit up the conference floor. So many things to see, so little time…. Garden of Life had a really fun booth. Sure there were lots of samples but the best part was their photo booth with fun props. Who doesn’t love a photo booth? Especially when they have you posing on a cover on the cover of a magazine. #careergoals
Genuine Health (the company that prides itself on gut health) was show casing their new fermented protein bar flavours, probiotics, protein, greens and their newest product: fermented organic gut superfoods+, which is basically a prebiotic. I had the opportunity to sample this product in three different flavours.
Gut health is so important. What we are learning now is that our gut is just as important as our brain. It’s linked to our overall health including our mood, hormones imbalances and weight management. And skin! Gut issues directly show up in our skin. Another strong point that we need to address our health concerns from the inside out.
This is just a brief highlight from my weekend at CHFA. I plan on featuring a lot of the great products and information in this blog and on social media so stay tune. Biggest health trends in the industry this year? As I mentioned it’s definitely collagen and prebiotic gut health.