The country’s first Non-GMO Project Verified string cheese is here. Processed at a small Ohio dairy, this string cheese offers a regional snack option that consumers can feel good about feeding their families.

The athlete cofounders of Snow Monkey Superfood Ice Treats see food as fuel and packed each pint with fruit, seeds and superfoods with functional benefits. This *ish* is b-a-n-a-n-a-s! The base of each Ice Treat is bananas, and all varieties are paleo, vegan and free from the eight major allergens.

Sweet enough and acrid enough to boost both cocktails and salads, this fermented honey delivered one of the most unique flavors in this year’s NEXTYs. GloryBee picked up the idea in Thailand and wisely jumped on the opportunity to combine its core competency with today’s hottest flavor profile: fermentation.

This speed-scratch side dish option delivers a delicious, clean spin on traditional pilafs, made with allergen-free and nutrient-dense ingredients. A product to fit seamlessly into busy lifestyles and fill rumbling stomachs with less than 10 minutes prep time, it contributes to a healthy, balanced meal without sacrificing taste.

Back to the Roots consistently brings innovative, accessible, engaging and ready-to-grow kitchen gardens to the natural living space. This new jar garden features an ancient olla watering technique, in which a porous pot buried in the soil slowly distributes water to the organic seeds, organic biochar and 100 percent USA soil to grow a countertop garden. Grow one, share a photo, and Back to the Roots will give one to the classroom of your choice.

This quirky company knew its packaging had to live up to its mission of helping people make the connection between food, kindness and environmental impact. And it does! The eye-catching, fully compostable, origami-style carton relays facts about the positive environmental impact consumers have by choosing plant-based products instead of meat.

With the budget-conscious family in mind, this make-your-own bar kit makes it easy to customize the perfect on-the-go snack at an affordable price. It also satisfies the eco-conscious by reducing packaging waste. The kit makes 25 bars for under $1 apiece.

The natural beauty industry’s maturity has resulted from science, packaging and serious results, but it’s also about fun and practicality. Enter Bob’s Butt Wipes. Take a moment to chuckle—indeed, this line makes me feel like a kid again—before appreciating that the cheeky branding (the company has, perhaps, taken this stereotypical male approach too literally and too far) brings levity to the space and, most importantly, delivers a natural version of a product that is in demand, yet nearly impossible to find. While natural brands have innovated around eco facial wipes, sports wipes and baby wipes, this nontoxic, biodegradable, flushable butt wipe is a first—and potentially a first of many.

You’re staring at screens more than ever. Indeed, you’re looking at a screen right now. That’s a problem because of all the blue light pouring into the macula of your eye, which causes damage. This product calls on two branded ingredients: VisionAid Herbal Blend and LuteMax 20/20—and in efficacious doses, no less—to aid circulation and boost intake of protective carotenoid lutein, zeaxanthin and meso-zeaxanthin.

K’UL reminds us that chocolate, when done right, through artisanal practices from direct farm-to-bar sourcing, roasting and grinding in small batches, is one of the first superfoods. Fused with other functional ingredients like turmeric, ginseng, ginger and goldenberries, it’s a superfood for health and building communities.

Inspired by recipes from the cofounder’s grandma, this delicious condiment is suitable for a variety of special diets including vegan, soy-free, gluten-free, low-sodium (there are only 5 grams of sodium per serving!) and Whole30 Approved. Instead of peanuts, blended almonds add nutty flavor and body; coconut milk, lime juice, vinegar, ginger lemongrass, Thai chilis and more add intense heat and flavor. Rather than cane sugar, Yai’s Thai adds naturally sweet tamarind juice for a hit of nuance.

This almond milk plus chocolate protein energy drink contains 100 percent plant protein and 1,000 milligrams of maca root (sourced from Peru), said to contribute an energy boost.

Have you ever poured traditional almond milk or soy milk into a fresh cup of coffee only to find that it curdles the entire beverage? This new coconut cream- and almond milk-based creamer won our hearts because it fills a much-needed space in the dairy-free category. Inside this attractively packaged box you’ll find a tasty vegan half-and-half that melts into coffee with ease. We love how Califia uses sunflower lecithin instead of soy lecithin to achieve a Non-GMO Project Verified blend. Also cool: Each creamer flavor contains zero sugar—the brand instead incorporates zero-calorie monk fruit for a dessert-y, sweet taste.

These on-the-go snacks ditch the boring hummus for Asian-inspired flavors paired with popped rice chips. The flavor-forward selections include Adzuki Bean Ginger Ponzu, Edamame Green Pea Wasabi, Lentil Roasted Onion Shiitake and Black Bean Yuzu Chili. The young company touts its relationship with family-owned American farms.

Tea and bubbles, together at last. Sound presents clever flavor combinations like green tea with grapefruit and mint, or rose tisane with lime and cardamom, and makes them sparkle. The company boldly and proudly avoids sweeteners of any kind and delivers a crisp dry beverage unlike anything we’ve tried.

Disposable diapers are the dilemma of any environmentally conscious parent. They choke landfills, but cloth diapers require water and transportation costs that eclipse the benefits. Poof comes in with a disposable diaper that’s biodegradable, non-GMO and antibacterial without the questionable chemical element, allowing parents to change the world while they change diapers.

True Story’s organic packaged meats fill a void in the ready-to-eat meats category. We love that the company supports family farms that their animals humanely and without added hormones or antibiotics, as well as practice environmental stewardship.

Beauty, Belly, and Brain Elixirs offer everything we like in a supplement–quality, efficacious, science-backed ingredients blended with ancient wisdom, plus USDA Organic with fermented ingredients for easier digestion. The three categories address wellness holistically within easy-to-consume, scoopable blends. Amazing Grains prioritizes education and transparency around its sourcing–that's integrity that’s easy to stand behind.

Probiotics are all the rage, but it’s hard to get efficacious doses in foods, plus what kid likes trying to swallow a pill? Nordic delivers quality probiotic strains in a powder formulation sweetened with erythritol and cavity-fighting xylitol. Tear open a single-serving pack, dump sweetness into mouth and prosper.

Fresh Bellies targets picky eaters by training kids’ palates before they develop aversions. The company blends vegetables like bell peppers and Swiss chard with spices like garlic and thyme, without adding fruits to mask the flavors. The packaging includes a spoon so kids can also develop fine motor skills through the eating process.

“No water, no life. No blue, no green,” said marine biologist Sylvia Earle, of ocean conservation nonprofit Mission Blue. Preserving marine life is certainly a primary motivator behind the creation of this new seafood mimic from Good Catch. But most notable about the product is how convincing an imposter it is. Two chefs (and other industry all-stars) teamed up to create this fishless tuna, and the result is a heft of protein and omega-3s (thank you, proprietary legume blend and algal oil, respectively) served up in a truly remarkable tuna-like flavor, texture and mouthfeel. In fact, at first glance, the only things missing from Good Catch’s effort are the office-offending odor and the mercury. The product is pre-launch, but we’re expecting quite a splash from this marine-less tuna.

Hemp oil, and specifically CBD, are hot commodities these days—but they are not without some risk. We’ve seen reports of the DEA sweeping such products off store shelves in states like Indiana and North Dakota. Emerald brings a wholly new take on the subject with non-cannabis ingredients that nevertheless positively influence the body’s endocannabinoid system, which is involved in every aspect of human health by mediating and regulating a wide range of physiological effects from the brain and nervous system to pain, appetite and mood. Five SKUs address trending concerns like stress, sleep, cognitive, inflammation and bliss. The company has a robust education campaign to help retailers and the public understand the importance of the endocannabinoid system and how it can be influenced by compounds other than those found in the cannabis plant. Industry education legend Dr. Michael Murray, N.D., sits on the company’s board of scientific advisors.,

Throwing things away only discards them temporarily, while Mother Earth is tasked with the long-term relationship of cohabitation with garbage. As a nonprofit turned for-profit certified B Corporation, World Centric aims to regenerate our nature through compostable plates that nourish the Earth instead of litter it. Not only are these plates compostable, but they are made from discarded wheat straw, which creates additional revenue streams for wheat farmers. By turning unused and wasted straw into an environmentally superior alternative to tree-based pulp, World Centric helps to protect forests by reducing the strain on trees. Certified Gold Business by Green America and certified compostable by BPI international ensures the product biodegrades within one to three months in either a backyard or commercial facility. World Centric is a 1% For the Planet contributor and donates 25 percent of its profits to support environmental projects and education around the world on the importance of waste reduction, low-energy production and pollution-free products.

It’s tempting to read a great deal into the suffix in the name Elmhurst Milked. The maker of a new line of top-quality nut- and grain-based beverages indeed has a rich past (-tense) as a traditional dairy. Founded in 1919, Elmhurst enjoyed some 80 years supplying much of New York City’s school milk needs in the five boroughs. Recently, however, 80+-year-old CEO Henry Schwartz pivoted from the dwindling profits of dairy to the burgeoning opportunities of plant-based innovation, creating inspired, simple, five-ingredient nut milks (no carrageenan, no soy). And let’s get to the important point: these simple, healthy milks taste great! Cow’s milk is past-tense for Elmhurst, but there’s a bright future (and a thirsty new herd) ready for this brand.

As an acupuncturist and herbalist, Alchemist Collection’s founder has always been committed to solving her patients’ problems, and what she recently realized was that she could package her mission and expertise. Debuting her healing concoctions at Natural Products Expo East, she impressed us with a combination of homeopathic topical drug products (why you’ll see a drug panel on some SKUs) and cosmetics, focusing on the idea that the body can heal itself—but it needs some help. Our Editors' Choice NEXTY winner, Wound Repair, is made with a carefully crafted blend of therapeutic oils geared toward issues such as wounds, cuts, rashes, bites and more. Like all of Alchemist Collection’s products (everything from wound healing to acne, itch and cold sore relief), Wound Repair is informed by traditional Chinese medical practices, scientifically vetted and formulated by the founder herself with high-quality botanicals. A  perfect combination of science, simplicity and heart, this company is alchemy at its finest.