A little over a week ago, I attended the Weston A. Price Foundation‘s 26th Annual Wise Traditions Conference at the Omni Shoreham Hotel Washington D.C. Many know Wise Traditions for its speakers and its food, but there’s a lot to be said as well about its exhibitors. Whereas most of the conventions I attend are trade shows, WT is geared towards consumers and activists. Being activist oriented means that attendees are ahead of the curve when it comes to food innovation. Types of foods such as bone broth, seed oil free snacks, and sprouted nuts were seen exhibiting here before the trade shows. And along with these foods are brands who made their debuts at WT before going the trade show route. This list is a combination of new brands I discovered along with new products from my favorite exhibitors.
In alphabetical order, here are my 7 product discoveries at the 2024 Wise Traditions Conference:
Fairchild’s
Steve Campbell has become a regular at the Wise Traditions Conferences as one of the professional guides for the farm tours. At this past Conference, he could also be found in the exhibit hall promoting Fairchild’s apple cider vinegar. Steve has a background owning a ranch himself as well as helping other farmers improve their farms. With his knowledge of agriculture and health, he understands the health benefits apple cider vinegar offers both to livestock and human health. When choosing apple cider vinegars, it’s important to choose one like Fairchild’s which is organic and unpasteurized.
Honey’s Harvest Farm
Honey’s Harvest Farm practices regenerative agriculture, growing a wide variety of fruits and vegetables in living soil. They also offer visits to their farm for weekend retreats, getaways, and events such as weddings and corporate functions. At the farm and online, people can purchase raw honeys and a wide variety of herbal products, including elderberry syrup and CBD oil.
Loncho’s Larder
As more people are becoming aware of the dangers of seed oils, the market is ever expanding in options for healthy fats from pasture animals. Loncho’s Lader produces both beef tallow and lard. Additionally, they sell organic tortilla and potato chips cooked in tallow. While we’re also seeing a growth in tallow chips, it’s important to chips sourcing organic crops. Many tallow snacks, especially potato chips, don’t source organic. If not properly farmed, potatoes can be one of the most damaging crops to soil.
Owl Spoon Water Kefir 
There never seems to be a shortage of new ideas for beverages on the market. At this year’s WT, attendees got to learn about another excellent fermented beverage. Owl Spoon Water Kefir mixes water kefir with sweet flavors such as elderberry and hibiscus. Owl Spoon has the slogan “Nope. It’s not kombucha”. While it’s not kombucha, it is similar in terms of being packed with billions of healthy bacteria for good gut health and a great taste.
Proven
At one time, beef sticks sourcing grass fed were hard to find. While now way more common, Proven takes grass a fed snack sticks a step further with its options mixing in items such as organ meats or berries. The organ meat stick consists of heart and liver. Like many, I find liver has a strong taste. But Proven sticks aren’t overloaded with the organ meats and contain a lot of muscle meat in them. I couldn’t taste the liver at all. All of the meat comes from regenerative family farms across the U.S. These include Ripley Cove Farms, which is owned by Proven founders Chad & Christine Meinders.
Rich Nuts
Rich Pauwels has become a mainstay at the WT Conference with his sprouted nuts eponymously named Rich Nuts. In addition to the packs of sprouted nuts, he introduced sprouted nut butters. While both sprouted nuts and nut butter have become more common, there are very few sprouted nut butters. Also, whole most nut butters are made from almonds, Rich provides options for other types of nut butters with his walnut and pecan creations.
WholeStix
Leave it to the Weston A. Price Foundation’s Wise Traditions Conference to have not one, but two exhibitors selling organ meat sticks. WholeStix has a regenerative grass fed sticks which consist 10% of liver, kidney, heart, and tongue and 90% of premium beef. Founders Julia & Joey Lawless raise 5 kids on a regenerative farm in Oklahoma. Having kids, they know how fussy they can be. Anybody who finds organ meats overpowering won’t be able to taste them in WholeStix.