Sports Nutrition Retreat: Planting the Seeds of Innovation with Botanicals

A small group of people from different corners of the natural products industry came together for a one-day retreat in Florida to plant the seeds of innovation in the sports nutrition market, with a focus on botanical offerings.

Steve Myers, Senior Editor

May 11, 2018

12 Slides
Sports Nutrition Retreat: Planting the Seeds of Innovation with Botanicals

Innovation is not born out of thin air. It has a story. And like most great stories, it starts once upon a time, as a seed planted in fertile soil. While innovation may begin from a single place, it spreads as it grows. Over time, many hands and minds will shape the innovation, which thrives on its surrounding environment.

“Innovation is a global topic,” said Loretta Zapp, CEO of Applied Food Sciences (AFS), whose company hosted its 6th annual innovation retreat in Boca Raton, Florida, last month. For the retreats, AFS brings together a small group of about 20 or so people with a mixture of different roles in the natural products industry, from legal/regulatory and marketing to science, executive management and media. The idea, Zapp explained, is that innovation requires input from a wide range of specialties, so gathering these various minds in one place can foster new ideas.

This year’s event was focused on innovations in sports nutrition, especially involving botanical ingredients. The retreat featured presentations, exercises and networking sessions. Presenters included Kris Gethin, founder of sports supplement brand Kaged Muscle; Steve French, managing partner of the Natural Marketing Institute (NMI); Rakesh Amin, partner with Amin Talati Upadhye; Thaddeus Napp, director of strategy, and Susan Touchette Aust, account director, with Vermilion Design + Digital; Jackson Zapp, VP of innovation for AFS; and, Chris Fields, VP of scientific affairs for AFS.

 

About the Author

Steve Myers

Senior Editor

Steve Myers is a graduate of the English program at Arizona State University. He first entered the natural products industry and Virgo Publishing in 1997, right out of college, but escaped the searing Arizona heat by relocating to the East Coast. He left Informa Markets in 2022, after a formidable career focused on financial, regulatory and quality control issues, in addition to writing stories ranging research results to manufacturing. In his final years with the company, he spearheaded the editorial direction of Natural Products Insider.

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