Natural Products Expo West
The Natural Products Expo West is the leading exposition of natural products and medicines. Held in Boulder Colorado on March 12th, the 38th annual expo boasted a massive attendance of 85,000, with both industry giants and a new crop of innovators turning up in droves. Despite the name of its location, this even clearly didnt have to worry about a rocky start.
The star of this year expo was the humble CBD molecule. The Expo West CBD summit was intended to be a showcase the challenges and opportunities that CBD-based medicine faces today. Suppliers, sellers, and entrepreneurs in attendance learned how an increased understanding of the regulatory, scientific, standards, and retail conditions surrounding CBD and other cannabis-based medicines.
Cannabis-based medicines are proving to be one of the most rapidly growing industries in the world. Cannabis and CBD are also emerging as new lifestyle supplements that can help with a massive range of ailments and diseases. On top of this, it is also becoming an economic course to reckoned with.
The Natural Products Expo West set itself up as an opportunity to connect with fellow retailers in this growing field, see the latest products, and create a vibrant community in the burgeoning cannabis industry.
Innovation
Innovation is the main focus of Expo West. Dozens of dynamic, entrepreneurial brands, first-timers, and industry veterans came together to learn about future developments in the natural medical scene. Expo West wanted to be a forum for conversations that can act as a catalyst for change in culture and society.
Another focus for Expo West wasn’t education; for a market of innovators knowledge is vital for them to develop the skills they need to change the world. Expo West featured a comprehensive education program featuring keynote presentations from important industry figures including actress Jennifer Garner, award winning actress, and organic industry pioneer and best selling author and co-founder of Once Upon a Farm, Anna Lapp
Sustainability
The threat of climate change and creating a new, sustainable industry was a large focus for Natural Products Expo West. The New Hope Network and the Climate Collaborative; a union of leading brands that are cooperating to help address climate change.
CBD
CBD is the new rising star of natural medicine. This year, Expo West included their first ever CBD summit. This summit took an in-depth look at the reality of the CBD market today. CBD has demonstrated calming effects, pain killing properties, and anti-inflammatory effects. This makes it a potential panacea for a massive range of conditions and ailments.
It is important to examine both the legal and social forces that surround CBD. CBD, is a chemical known as a cannabinoid. These chemicals interact with a number of receptors in the human body that are known as the Endocannabinoid system. This system is responsible for everything from digestive health, to mood, and even the severity of epileptic fits.
The best place to find this cannabinoid is, unsurprisingly, in the cannabis plant. At the moment several countries across the West are either enacting legislation or at the very least flirting with it. It is vital for any entrepreneurs in the natural cure industry to know which way certain countries are going. Dont forget, every company that decriminalises cannabis is a fresh market for any canny CDB innovator.
CBD is a non-psychoactive drug, this means that in some jurisdictions it is perfectly legal. Any innovator in the CBD sphere will want to ensure that they turn themselves into a political expert, too! Were sure for anyone canny enough to be on the CBD train already, will be more than capable of sussing out the zeitgeist of potential markets.
Why Was Expo West Important For The CBD Scene
Why is an exposition like this important for the CBD industry?
While Expo West is marketed as a business-oriented event that aims to bring various companies together, it is important to remember that these companies are made of people, and many people together make a community.
Creating a community around the use of CBD for lifestyle and the treatment of ailments means that a vast network of advocates will organically arise. Organising a CBD summit for the purposes to discuss cannabidiol is the first step towards founding a movement that will see CBD thrust into the mainstream.
A community is vital for any product, it is a self-contained PR machine, viral advertiser, and testimonial producer. If the CBD industry wants to assert itself as the next big movement in the natural lifestyle movement, then building a community and careers should be their number one priority.