Last week, the Weston A. Price Foundation held their 24th Annual Wise Traditions Conference at the Renaissance Orlando. This was my sixth Wise Traditions Conference which I’ve attended since 2012.
I’m always excited to check out the Wise Traditions exhibitors. At Wise Traditions, I can count on all the vendors having products consistent with the Weston A. Price dietary guidelines. Also, the Conference is tailored towards activists and consumers, so a lot of brands have exhibited at Wise Traditions first to test the waters before registering and exhibiting at trade shows. My discoveries at this year’s Wise Traditions were a combination of new vendors at the Conference plus some of the most popular exhibitors from past years introducing new and unique products.
In alphabetical order, here are my 5 product discoveries at the 2024 Wise Traditions Conference:
Dr. Cowan’s Garden
I’ve known about Dr. Cowan’s Garden since they first sprouted and exhibited at the 2015 Wise Traditions Conference. Founded by WAPF vice president Dr. Thomas Cowan along his sons Asher & Joe, their company originally involved selling powders made from literally from vegetables grown in Dr. Cowan’s garden. They’ve since expanded into a diverse line of products representing all types of real foods which are part of the Wise Traditions diet. At this year’s conference, they had two new items to introduce. Both use a filtered water which is restructured, alkalized, mineralized, oxygenated, and energized. And both are types of products I love. The first is a concentrate of hibiscus, my favorite type of tea. The second is a fermented hot sauce. Fermented hot sauces are beginning to break through within the ever growing market of gourmet hot sauces. Dr. Cowan’s hot sauce is not only fermented, but also shelf stable.
Dr. Linda’s
Dr. Linda’s is another frequent Wise Traditions vendor. Like Dr. Cowan’s Garden, it’s also founded and run by an alternative medicine doctor. Dr. Linda Robins’ business offers magnesium rich products, containing ingredients such as kelp, kombu, and dulce. At past conferences, Dr. Linda’s exhibition booth would provide samples of popcorn with their kelp on it. The popcorn was such a hit with attendees that they decided to sell it to consumers. Dr. Linda’s popcorn sources organic kernels, cooks them in coconut oil, and seasons them with real salt. As there are so many popcorns on the market cooked with seed oils and seasoned with iodized salt, it’s wonderful to have a popcorn which not only uses nutrient dense ingredients but also has an added superfood for extra flavor.
Lotus Nutrition
Dates are becoming a popular natural sweeteners for nutrient dense snacks. They’re one of the oldest sweeteners plus involve use of a whole food. No refining, processing, or filtering is need to make dates into a sweetener. Lotus Nutrition offers date rolls in the flavors of coconut, raspberry, strawberry & coconut, and pistachio. Lotus’ treats are also organic, gluten free, and grain free. It was great getting to meet founder Lina Stavreva and learn more about her business. Lina is based out of Tampa, making her one of the exhibitors at Wise Traditions Orlando from the greater Florida area.
Pure Indian Foods
WAPF Chapter leader Sandeep Agarwal has been exhibiting his Pure Indian Foods‘ products at Wise Traditions Conferences now for over 15 years. He first exhibited when his company was in startup phase with their grass fed ghee. Since exhibiting, Pure Indian Foods has moved into more categories of Indian food, such as spices, oils, and sauces. All of these additions were driven by the demands of his consumers. At this year’s Wise Traditions, Sandeep had a number of new products to share. Pictured above, he’s holding his two varieties of pickles, garlic and raw mango. Other new items from Pure Indian Foods included tablets of dried amla fruit, liquid drops of the ayurvedic supplement Himalayan Shilajit, and his ready-to-cook OnePot Kitchari. Sandeep also was one of this year’s Conference speakers. His presentation talked about the benefits of different Indian spices. He then gave a cooking demo with his kitchari and spices. Attendees had the pleasure of sampling his delicious kitchari and seasoning it was various Pure Indian Foods products. The OnePot Kitchari is a mix of sprouted brown rice, mung beans, and spices. With Sandeep being a chapter leader, exhibitor, and speaker, he’s one of the hardest working people in the WAPF community.
Winter Park Honey
As their name suggests, Winter Park Honey is based out of Winter Park, FL, only miles from where this year’s Wise Traditions Conference was held. Owners Peter and Laura Leigh Williams first became fascinated with bees, and the many benefits of raw, natural honey, after learning both of their Grandparents had bees as part of their agricultural background. Originating at farmers markets selling local honey, Winter Park Honey now has a sister company called Local Bee Honey. Local Bee Honey consists of honey that is formulated using their patented, pollen infused formula, that allows it to offer allergy relief, wherever “local” may be found. This makes it available in whatever area of the United States a person may live in. Not only does Winter Park Honey offer raw natural honey from Florida and natural infused flavors, but they also work with beekeepers across the country to provide a vast selection of raw natural unique honey varieties, along with other medicinal honeys. This includes their Joint Relief Buckwheat honey and their Local Bee Honey.