The supply chain is becoming more connected and technology is driving transparency into the sourcing process. New solutions around blockchain can connect brands with their primary suppliers—even back to the farm—to create tangible, verifiable impacts. Christian Shearer of Regen Network and Terra Genesis discusses the potential.

Generation Z, those 20 years and younger, have had a short time to establish their shopping habits, but they have already have their own rules for what qualifies as a healthy product. They want brands to have helpful ingredients, demonstrate responsible social values and play a role in their overall holistic health, but Gen Z are frugal shoppers concerned with price point. In this podcast, Sandy Almendarez, editor in chief, INSIDER, discusses Gen Z with Shelley Balanko, Ph.D., senior vice president, Hartman Group, including:

• How Generation Z will likely evolve its shopping behavior as it matures

• The differences in habits already shaping within the generation

• The product attributes that impress Gen Z the most

Rachel Adams, managing editor, and Kurt Schneider, president of Tech Bridge West, review the basics of quality agreements in a contact manufacturer partnership, along with real-world examples and red flags that underscore the importance of an adequate, well-executed quality agreement.

Informa’s Heather Granato talks with Jeff Moyer of The Rodale Institute about organic and regenerative agriculture, and the ways brands can deliver truly healthy products to their consumers.

Technology is transforming the supply chain, improving companies’ abilities to produce ingredients and bring them to market, as well as make it easier to access information at any point of production. On a trip to China, Informa’s Heather Granato discussed the topic with professionals from companies including ADH Health, Cott Beverage Solutions, Innophos, the National Animal Supplement Council, NOW Foods, Promotion in Motion, Shaklee and Threshold.

The Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) which became law in 2011, and by September 2018 nearly all food, beverage and supplement makers will be required to follow the rules. FDA is actively enforcing rules and inspecting facilities based on varying implementation timelines. This means there’s no safe place to hide so suppliers and manufacturers need to have best practices in place to pass a FSMA audit.

In this SupplySide West edition of the Healthy INSIDER Podcast, Rachel Adams, managing editor, and Tara Couch, senior director of dietary supplement and tobacco services at

EAS Consulting Group, discuss essential quality systems for an own label distributor in a contract manufacturing partnership.

Alternative sweeteners, clean label, plant-based protein, personalized nutrition, alternative dairy and better-for-you food and beverage ingredients. All these trends and more were on display at the 2018 IFT Annual Meeting & Food Expo.

Ginger Schlueter, assistant editor, spoke with Offir Benjamin, Ph.D., researcher and lecturer at Tel-Hai College. Listeners will learn about alternative dairy trends, how to reduce food waste and how education plays a vital role in entering the food space.

In this podcast, reporters Todd Runestad and Josh Long review last week’s landmark event—FDA approval of Epidiolex, a CBD medicine to treat rare and severe forms of epilepsy—and debate the potential impact on the natural products industry.