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A photo of all the freebies I collected at the Natural Products Expo East

Last weekend, I visited the Natural Products Expo East in Baltimore, MD for the second year in a row.  Just imagine a convention with lots of organic and natural products to sample on-the-spot and also take home with you.  With three levels and over 1,400 vendors in attendance the event is overwhelming but satisfying and the products range from food, drink, skin care, vitamins, jewelry and clothing. The photo above is just 2/3 of what I collected during my 4 hours at the expo and below are some of the foods I sampled.

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If you are planning to visit the Expo East or Expo West I have five takeaways from the Natural Products Expo East.

1. Wear Comfortable Walking Shoes and Clothes – The Expo East recently added two levels with even more vendors and this in a nutshell means more walking for you, so comfortable shoes are a must.  The aisles are set up with vendors on each side and I was literally walking up and down each aisles to make sure I didn’t miss anything.  You’re going to need comfortable clothes because of all the food you’ll be eating.  I made sure to eat a light breakfast and arrive right around lunch time because I knew I’d be hungry and eat large amounts of samples.

2. Bring A Rolling Tote – Almost every vendor there has canvas and cloth bags to give away. This sounds like the perfect idea to store all your freebies but because you get so many freebies, you end up carrying many bags also.  My first go-round my friend and I left there with six bags each and we had to drive home in her two-seater car. Imaging me driving with bags on bags on my lap…not a pleasant drive home.  It’s much easier to bring a large rolling tote to push or pull your freebies and this will free up your arms for more grabbing. Bonus Tip: Make sure you have room in your trunk to store all you’re bags and your rolling tote because you’re going to need it.

3. Attend The Expo On The Last Day –  The Expo is normally on a Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Late Saturday Evening or Sunday I find the vendors are eager to get rid of all merchandise because they don’t want to take anything back with them.  Normally they would give you one of their product, but on the last day towards the evening they are throwing everything at you and begging you to take it home.  You are guaranteed to get even more freebies on the last day.

If you’ve attended the expo or plan on attending the next one, leave a comment and let me know if my tips are helpful.

And always follow my foodie and cocktail adventures on social media …