Program

The Key Themes we will cover in the 2025 Summit are:

• State of the Market

  The last couple of years have been very good for the sports and active nutrition categories, as products like Creatine have burst into the mass consciousness and hydration has boomed. Despite the success, there’s still a ‘Sea of Sameness’ in the space and a lot of “me-too” products. So which categories will drive sports & active nutrition in 2025, which novel ingredients are shaking up the formulations, and where are those elusive white spaces?

  

• The Regulatory Landscape

  The industry seems to be leaping from one frying pan into another fire, as States follow a playbook to restrict access to sports supplements for people under 18; as Amazon clamps down on bodybuilding supplements, as novel ingredients hit regulatory brick walls, as FDA continues to push for mandatory product listings, and the never-ending flow of class actions. This session will unpack these issues and more.

  

• Women’s Health

  After a block-buster session in 2024, we’re putting the spotlight back on active woman. The segment has been massively underserved and understudied for decades, but the times they are a-changing and the old “pink it and shrink it” approach is being left to the history books. Sports nutrition products are being formulated by women for women, while more research is targeting women across the age-ranges and at various levels of athletic performance. All this translates into an exciting and growing market for high quality, efficacious products for active women. This session will hear from successful brands, leading researchers, and active women themselves on what they want.

  

• A.I. for Sports Nutrition

  From big data crunching to novel ingredient discovery, to opportunities in personalization, artificial intelligence is having a profound impact on all aspects of life, including health and wellness. This session will hear from the innovators and pioneers to show us where things currently stand, and where this transformative technology could take us in the near future.

  

• Creatine 

  With almost 46% year-on-year growth in the natural and mass channel, creatine is one of the industry’s hottest ingredients. Consumer data indicates new consumers of creatine are skewing older and female as emerging data support the bone health and cognitive benefits of the ingredient. There is also innovation in the forms of creatine on the market, which has been dominated by creatine monohydrate for decades. Where does the science stand on these new forms? Could they open up formulation opportunities in novel delivery formats like chews and gummies and liquids? We’ll bring together experts from across the creatine world to explore the expanding list of creatine benefits and the state of the science for new forms.

  

• Innovative Ingredients

  Sports nutrition product formulators have a wide range of ingredients to choose from, all with their own levels of scientific substantiation, advantages and disadvantages. Disruptive tech like A.I., advances in -omics and the microbiome, and a deeper understanding of biochemistry are unlocking even more new potential ingredients. This session brings together product innovators, formulators, and market watchers to discuss the ingredients to watch in the active nutrition space.

  

• Nutritional Approaches to Enhance Recovery

  There are four Rs for recovery: Rehydration; Refuel; Repair; and Rest. From a market perspective, each of these categories is well served, including formulations to address these directly or indirectly via microbiome modulation. This session will explore the emerging science, market positioning, and innovation in the recovery space.

  

• Nootropics and Cognitive Health

  There is an increasing appreciation of mental performance for sports performance, but it’s not just about decision making and focus during competition, but also mood and sleep. Which ingredients, formulations, and brands are driving this sector? Where is the innovation in the space? What are the most important endpoints for consumers (professional and amateur)? And how does the category navigate such vastly different sports?

  

• Social Media – Building a Clear Voice Amid the Noise

  Influencer marketing is an increasingly important way to connect with both established and new consumers, and to do it successfully brands need to stay within federal guidelines and ensure their chosen influencer partners match the brand’s mission and standards. This session will explore how the influencer ecosystem evolved in the past few years, how brands can leverage influencers to reach new audiences, explore what a successful partnership looks like, and offer advice on how best to measure it all.