Most people don't know how tofu is made, much less that the leftover soybean pulp can be transformed into Renewal Mill's okara flour, the base of these tasty cookies. Renewal Mill builds its entire business around upcycling, using ingredients typically discarded during production. Additionally, the company sources from a carefully curated list of suppliers—including Vesta Chocolate, a bean-to-bar craft chocolate factory, for these cookies—and uses only organic ingredients. Those practices matter to some consumers; the cookies' good taste will matter to all and it might introduce a few to the good work Renewal Mill is doing.

Ziba baby pistachios are a healthy munchable snack but it's the company's origin-focused mission that inspires us to seek these out. Ziba Foods Baby Pistachio Kernels are entirely sourced and processed in Afghanistan, where the company works closely with farmers and cooperatives, pays fair prices for the best product, and supports and improves the role of women in Afghan society. Ziba's workforce is 80% women, and the company offers them year-round employment despite the cyclical nature of agriculture. Bringing these delectable nuts to market requires persistent engagement and outstanding integrity.

Booth N545 and Virtual Booth

Four Sigmatic's line of creamers aims to bring more transparency and clean ingredients to the emerging "functional creamers" category. These coconut-based powdered creamers—made with real cacao, coconut milk, MCT oil and plentiful amounts of functional mushrooms such as lion's mane, reishi and cordyceps—support improved focus, gut health and immunity. The creamers build on the brand's unique mushroom heritage and mission of bringing healthy and accessible upgrades to coffee routines everywhere. The company is so named because of a focus on the fourth "sigma," the 100 most-studied, most nutrient-dense foods on the planet. Every batch is outsourced to third-party testing labs to ensure quality.

Booth 5684 and Virtual Booth

Everyone's favorite food just got a plant overhaul with this mouthwatering mozzarella that has all the browning, bubbly, gooey deliciousness of traditional mozzarella. No stranger to vegan innovation, Miyoko's crafted this latest product with cultured cashew milk and without common fillers like lectin, gluten, dairy, soy, peas and fillers. That's amore!

This is no ordinary probiotic product. It contains a super-high 90 billion CFUs per serving, plus the label indicates the precise percentages of each of the 12 DNA-verified specific probiotic strains at work. The strains, which also contain a prebiotic fiber lunch box for the friendly bacteria, help women with vaginal, digestive and immune health. True Grace partners with Rodale Institute to advance regenerative organic agricultural practices.

This certified organic hemp tincture is formulated and compounded with medicinal herbs traditionally used to help the body maintain and balance a strong immune system. Ingredients include reishi, echinacea, elderflower and yarrow. This product hails from Oregon, created by a company that follows ethical and sustainable practices, believes in environmental stewardship and uses responsible packaging.

Booth 2927 and Virtual Booth

Beyond lending itself to an endless assortment of joy-inducing bathroom puns during judging, this bamboo toilet paper is the "reel" deal, checking all the boxes of our three I's (innovation, inspiration and integrity) as it supports people, planet and potty. On a mission to flush unsustainable TP production practices including deforestation and wasteful packaging, the plastic- and tree-free brand exclusively uses bamboo for its super soft squares (yes, tested and approved!). Plus, the company contributes 50 cents for every box sold to SOIL—a nonprofit that builds safe, clean toilets in Haiti to help protect its water and sanitation systems—and tracks its transportation-related carbon emissions.

Wasteful single-use face masks, begone! This hydrating sheet mask set from Evergoods Global Co. comes with a bottle of beautifying liquid to soak eco-friendly, 100% cotton sheet masks yourself—no need for unrecyclable aluminum sachets that are the standard for these kinds of products. The mask cloths are compostable, and the pour-it-yourself serum boasts additives including hyaluronic acid, organic rosewater, chamomile flower water and sea minerals.

Booth N337 and Virtual Booth

Force of Nature's Lonestar Blend Wild Boar & Beef Sausage Links are delicious, artisan-made with organic spices and the company's holistically raised, grass-fed beef. But the main attraction, the wild boar, is notable and makes the sausage a sensation beyond its savory, satisfying flavor. Wild boar is an invasive species worldwide, and there are millions just in Texas. They're "free range," as they roam the vast Texas landscape both on public and private land, and wreak havoc on the environment, causing crop destruction, car accidents and water pollution. Force of Nature sources these feral hogs from ranchers and hunters who trap them, protecting the state from their destruction. 

Crafty Counter's WunderEggs are an aesthetically pleasing and authentic tasting, plant-based, hard-boiled egg. Founder Hema Reddy embarked on this project after witnessing the fragility of the food system during the pandemic and the environmental challenges posed by producing animal proteins. Made with a simple ingredient list of water, cashews, almonds, coconut milk, black salt, nutritional yeast, agar and turmeric extract, these vegan eggs look and taste the part while being free of seven of the top eight allergens. The colorful, eye-catching packaging is engaging while the presentation of the eggs as halves, showing the turmeric-colored yolks invites consumers to give them a try. Made with Non-GMO ingredients, the BIPOC, women-owned company aims to be certified organic by 2023 and to have non-GMO, gluten-free and vegan certifications completed in 2022.

Booth N2019 and Virtual Booth

Fila Manila once again represents the authentic flavors of the Philippines, brought to life in the New Jersey-based FilAm (Filipino American) community where this small-batch jam was birthed and crafted. Thick and sweet, this creamy coconut and purple yam-based spread is tasty and satisfying—and more than a little crave-worthy. The brand also wins big points for innovation and for creating a gluten-free product that is free of artificial colors, flavors and excess sugars.

Booth N1646 and Virtual Booth

This tasty blend of savory organic coconut aminos gets a spicy kick from sriracha, creating a umami-ful sauce that is perfect as a marinade or on its own. A USDA Organic and Fair-Trade Certified product, it comes together through a blend of only five clean ingredients. Also admirable is Big Tree Farms' mission as an integrated social enterprise focused on improving farmer livelihoods through fair pricing and regenerative farming practices. As the world's largest and most sustainable coconut flower supply chain, the brand works directly with over 10,000 farmer partners who grow coconut palms in bio-diverse, water-conserving food forests that provide long-term sustainable benefits to the local community and environment.

Mission is at the forefront for Pulp Pantry, a company that is turning the critical food industry problem of food waste into an opportunity to upcycle organic ingredients into desirable, fiber-rich food products. The Jalapeño Lime Pulp Chips are tangy as all get out—they're sweetened with the lesser-known superfood lucuma rather than sugar—and judges were super impressed by its vegetable-rich ingredient list. This product contains more fiber than kale chips and fewer carbs than potato or tortilla chips. Pulp Pantry also hopes to work with accreditation agencies to create carbon offsets associated with upcycling food. 

Booth 5161 and Virtual Booth

TCHO Chocolate Toffee Time is so creamy, rich and flavorful that it's easy to not notice that this milk chocolate is made from plant-based oat milk mixed with bits of vegan toffee and flakes of sea salt. While vegans will delight in this dairy-free, plant-based offering, chocolate enthusiasts will be hard pressed to find fault. The recently Certified B-Corporation extends its "do-better" ethos to its environmentally friendly packaging: a fully recyclable carton on the outside; and an inner chocolate wrapper made of individual layers of 100% post-consumer wastepaper and certified compostable film. The USDA Certified Organic company focuses on transparency in its supply chain, using Fair Trade ingredients and providing a QR code so consumers can track sourcing for the cacao in each bar.

If you like scallops, the name on the box of this frozen Plant-Based Dusted Scallops will deliver as promised: It'll blow your mind. The all-women, family-owned company is setting standards for creating plant-based seafood using ingredients such as Konjac powder and root vegetable starch. This astonishing version of scallops has the flavor, texture and mouthfeel of scallops while it helps save our planet's oceans. The Plant Based Seafood Company, based along the Chesapeake Bay in Virginia, clearly knows its seafood—and is inventing plant-based products for seafood-lovers' plates.

If upcycling plus healthful plus refreshing equals integrity, then Spare Tonic Blueberry & Ginger beverage adds up. Spare Tonic is made with approximately 85%–95% upcycled fresh whey that would have otherwise been discarded from the production of strained yogurt. An acidic byproduct, yogurt whey is normally neutralized and discarded, otherwise it could wreak environmental havoc. Inspired by the dual vision of creating more health and less waste, Spare Tonic captures what would have been the lost value of this whey–nutritionally, economically and environmentally—and crafts it into an inspired, yummy and very refreshing beverage. 

Booth 1636 and Virtual Booth

Judges fell head over heels for this ground meat alternative's ultra-simple ingredient list, which mainly consists of lion's mane, portobello and shiitake mushrooms. It is the first WHOLE30 Certified plant-based product, and it blows many other meat alternatives out of the water in avoiding common allergens. Fun fact: The crumble also has an upcycled wine byproduct in it to improve color, extend shelf life and reduce sodium.

In addition to selecting the winners of the 18 NEXTY categories, New Hope’s editors decided which brands would receive this year’s Editors’ Choice Awards.

Booth N713 and Virtual Booth

If there's something that consumers need more of in 2022, it's joy—and this kettle corn product knocks that goal out of the park! Featuring all-natural sparkles (AKA sugar crystals colored with fruits and vegetables), it's pretty much impossible to feel sad digging into the brightly colored bag. The popcorn itself may not be the healthiest thing in the world, but that hardly matters if it can temporarily lift consumers out of the prolonged COVID-19 mental slump they've been in for the past two years. We're obsessed! 

Booth 1479 and Virtual Booth

This Certified Elephant Friendly stackable chai tea trio helps keep consumers feeling good inside and out. This delicious trio includes Mushroom Cacao Chai, Bold Green Chai and Bold Black Chai blends. The tea leaves are harvested from a Certified Elephant Friendly tea garden designed to protect Asian elephants and their habitats. The tea growers allow elephants to travel through the tea gardens without being harmed by electric fences, power lines, ditches or human conflict. The Republic of Tea remains socially responsible by being mindful of the impact actions have on communities and the environment.

Booth 3197 and Virtual Booth

What the world needs now is a plastic-free revolution and B-CLEAN could be a catalyst. Pairing its clean formulations (free from phosphates, ammonia, sodium hydroxide, chlorine bleach or dyes) with a smart, deconstructed packaging system, the B Corp brand from Boulder Clean eliminates single-use plastics. Simply fill reusable glass bottles with coin-sized tablets that activate with tap water. Consumers will love having a clean house and a clean conscience, knowing nothing went to the landfill.

Booth N2035 and Virtual Booth

Goodles Cheddy Mac is the "gooder" version of an all-American classic. It may taste like the delicious mac and cheese of your childhood, but Goodles has packed a big punch of nutrition into each serving with 15 grams of protein, 6 grams of fiber plus prebiotics, and 21 nutrients extracted from organic veggies like broccoli, chickpeas, kale, sweet potato, mushrooms and more. The cheese is sourced from a dairy partner in the Midwest and boosted with enzymes. The company also does Goodle in the community, donating a percentage of products to address food insecurity, working with World Central Kitchen. And the Clean Label Project tested and announced that Goodles mac & cheese meets their highest standard—the first boxed mac and cheese ever to receive Clean Label Purity Award certification.