Data shared by Spate during the “Virality to Vitality: How Digital Platforms Drive Wellness Discovery” education session, co-presented with MaryRuth’s, highlighted sustained consumer search interest across hair, skin and nail concerns, alongside growing engagement with both established ingredients such as collagen and newer actives including saffron and shilajit.
On the show floor, that mix of legacy and innovation was visible across product launches, ingredient debuts and format innovation.
Following Natural Products Expo West 2026, here are NutraIngredients’ top three emerging category trends.
Trend #1: Beauty-from-within reframes around healthy aging
Several companies pointed to a shift away from purely aesthetic positioning, with more emphasis on skin function and long-term health.
“The momentum has really shifted away from collagen… I’m seeing a lot more focus around an old player like antioxidants,” Meghan Taylor, director of science and innovation at MaryRuth’s, told NutraIngredients at Expo West, where the company debuted its soon-to-be-released Advanced Liquid Skin Restore and Renew product.
That shift is also changing how brands describe skin itself, increasingly “treating the skin like the actual barrier of the body and treating it from that aspect” to move toward more holistic positioning, Taylor said.
She also noted that the language around aging is evolving in parallel. “Healthy aging… it’s more than just the wrinkles… how can my skin do better for me?” she added.
Internal drivers are also gaining attention. “The stress link to both to beauty is a big one… micronutrients… and really what that inadequacy of our micronutrients can do to the rest of our body and how that really does physically manifest in hair, skin, nails,” she said.
Trend #2: Ingredient mix broadens as collagen remains central
While collagen still is a core ingredient in the category, activity at Expo West suggests brands are increasingly building around it.
Spate’s data points to expanding consumer interest in a wider set of ingredients, including both traditional nutrients and newer, culturally rooted actives, a shift reflected in supplier innovation.
“Customers, brands are looking for non animal source, beauty from within ingredients,” Sebastian Balcombe, founder and CEO of Specnova, told NutraIngredients.
At the same time, newer ingredients are often positioned alongside collagen rather than as replacements.
Specnova’s Ribobeauty, a blend of currant extracts and biotin on display at Expo West, reflects that approach, targeting benefits for hair, skin, and nails while remaining flexible across formats.
![“It’s a perfect alternative for companies or even [in] addition to collagen peptide product,” Balcombe said.](https://www.nutraingredients.com/resizer/v2/S4DRTXP4ORA7VNSUHXNRHN2G2I.jpg?auth=431dc37ebe07f212eb8c699e5b90e2bd8562907da0d5b60cd6fb111cfd1040c5&width=713&smart=true)
Other suppliers are taking different approaches. Wiley’s Finest introduced Omega-7 Skin, a marine-derived ingredient targeting hydration and elasticity.
“Omega-7 is gaining attention as an important nutrient in the beauty-from-within category, and we see marine sourcing as a natural evolution for the ingredient,” Bill Morgan, general manager of Wiley CPG, said in a pre-show press release.
Trend #3: Formats and retail expansion bring the category within daily routines
Alongside ingredient innovation, delivery formats are evolving, with a rising emphasis on products designed for everyday use.
Spate’s data also points to strong engagement with convenience- and daily-use formats, including liquids and ready-to-drink products, a trend reflected across the show floor.
Vital Proteins, for example, debuted a collagen sparkling water designed to combine hydration with beauty benefits.
The company added that “more than one in three collagen users are interested in trying new formats, including liquids,” highlighting demand for alternative delivery systems.
Other formats are also gaining traction.
“Soft chews are hot right now… jelly sticks, all sorts of fun things popping up in the marketplace,” Taylor said.
At the same time, distribution is expanding outside traditional supplement channels.
For example, Cymbiotika, which had a prominent brand presence at this year’s show, recently launched in Ulta Stores nationwide.
The move into a large beauty retailer reflects the growing overlap between ingestible and topical approaches.
As the category grows, expectations around substantiation are also rising.
“Consumers are smart… they ask tough questions… they want to see the science, and they want it to be credible,” Taylor said.
