Another October has just about come and gone, which means another Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo has as well. FNCE, as it’s known, had become the centerpiece of the professional marketing plan for many healthy food brands and companies—an opportunity to interact with 10,000-plus registered dietitians. The goal? Between educational sessions and awards ceremonies and social engagements, encourage dietitians to walk the large expo floor, sample some food, and take that experience back to their patients and clients.

Back in August, we wrote about the continuing importance of the physical grocery store despite the buzz around digital and online.

Well, here’s some more data to support that idea.

Food companies have been working hard to adapt to the new consumer-driven industry dynamic, altering existing business practices and innovating new products to meet consumer preference for healthier foods.

One area that has been a major focus of many companies is transparency. In fact, transparency has become a buzz word in the industry and, as with many other buzz words, runs the risk of losing all meaning.

What do consumers really want when they say transparency?

As people working in and around the food industry, we are awash in trends—new diets, new ingredients, new products, new markets.

But the über trend in the food industry right now is innovation.

Pulse was honored and excited to sponsor and participate in the recent Healthy Eating in Practice conference in Asheville, NC.

Organized in part by the UNC Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, the Duke Sanford World Food Policy Center, and the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project, the conference was a hands-on, experiential learning event for practitioners, researchers, and influencers, focused on changing the culture of healthcare to better support healthy eating behaviors.