Will Jones
Craize Snacks at Natural Products Expo West
Image Credit: Kayco Beyond
Natural Products Expo West often highlights what is new. This year, a prevalent theme was how familiar foods are being adjusted to better fit daily routines. Across categories, brands are not replacing staples so much as refining how they are used. That shift was evident in the approach of three companies within the Kayco Beyond portfolio, including Craize Snacks, Wonder Juice, and Dorot Gardens.
Craize Snacks sits at the intersection of two established formats, chips and crackers, but it avoids fully committing to either. The product is built on a corn base inspired by the arepa, with a thin texture that allows it to function both as a standalone snack and as a base for toppings. That flexibility reflects a broader shift in how snack products are positioned, moving beyond single-use occasions.
“Craize brings together the crunch and snackability of a chip with the versatility of a cracker,” said Michele Abo, the general manager of Kayco Beyond, the parent company behind Dorot Gardens, Wonder Juice, and Craize Snacks. She pointed to a proprietary fire griddle process that creates the product’s texture, while ingredients such as fruits, vegetables, and spices are baked directly into the dough. The result, she said, is “a clean label cracker that works as a healthy snack as well as a traditional cracker used with dips and toppings.”
Michele Abo, the general manager of Kayco Beyond, the parent company behind Dorot Gardens, Wonder Juice, and Craize Snacks
Image Credit: Kayco Beyond
That dual-use approach aligns with how consumers increasingly treat snacks, less as a separate category and more as part of meals, whether for quick lunches, shared plates, or casual entertaining.
In beverages, Wonder Juice reflects a similar emphasis on routine use. The brand’s cold-pressed juices are made with organic fruits and vegetables, with no added water or sugar, and are structured around repeat consumption rather than occasional purchase. The lineup now spans multiple varieties, including beet, melon, lemon, and newer green blends that incorporate ingredients such as kale, spinach, and cayenne.
Wonder Juice at Natural Products Expo West
Image Credit: Kayco Beyond
“Our Wonder Juice lineup of 100% organic, cold pressed juices all have no added water or sugar, and juice is always the first ingredient,” Abo said. She added that the range includes a dozen products designed to deliver “the nutritional and immune fighting benefits of freshly squeezed juice,” while remaining accessible as part of everyday habits.
The positioning speaks to a crowded category where differentiation often depends less on novelty and more on consistency. Products that can be integrated into daily routines, rather than treated as short-term trends, continue to hold more staying power.
Dorot Gardens, meanwhile, applies that same thinking to cooking. The brand’s frozen garlic and herb cubes address one of the more persistent gaps in home kitchens, the mismatch between buying fresh ingredients and using them efficiently. By preportioning and freezing herbs and garlic shortly after harvest, the company aims to preserve both flavor and usability.
Dorot Gardens at Natural Products Expo West
Image Credit: Kayco Beyond
“Dorot Gardens was created to make cooking with fresh garlic and herbs effortless by eliminating the preparation time and the peeling, chopping, and measuring that come with it,” Abo said. She noted that the cubes offer “all the nutritional benefits of fresh garlic and herbs,” while providing a longer shelf life in a resealable format that allows consumers to use only what they need, with “no waste, no wilting.”
Rather than changing what people cook, the product changes how they get there. That distinction is becoming more relevant as time constraints continue to shape how meals are prepared at home.
Taken together, the three brands point to a shift that feels less about disruption and more about adjustment. The categories themselves remain intact, but the formats are being reworked to better match how people actually use them.
With Expo West now in the rearview mirror, products like these are already moving into wider distribution. As they do, the line between specialty and everyday continues to narrow. For consumers, the change is subtle but consistent, with fewer barriers between intention and use and fewer compromises between convenience and ingredient transparency.