Probiota Americas, hosted by NutraIngredients in association with the International Probiotics Association, will take place at the Westin Bayshore, Vancouver from June 8-10. The three-day conference will feature world-leading experts to present the latest scientific, technical, regulatory, business, and market insights.
Market insights
Nick Gibson (Nielsen IQ) will open the main session with an examination of what is driving market growth for probiotics, prebiotics, and postbiotics across Canada and the US. Peter McMath (WPIC Marketing + Technologies) will then take the stage to share insights on the Asian microbiome marketplace, exploring how Asian consumers discover and purchase probiotic, prebiotic, and microbiome supplements using marketplace data.
The conversation will then shift gears to a panel discussion of the regulatory landscape in Canada and the US, where efforts to modernize the regulation of natural health products/ dietary supplements are underway and the implications for companies in this space. The panel will feature George Paraskevakos (IPA), Robert Durkin (Amin Wasserman Gurnani), and Dr. Jon-Paul Powers (Gowling WLG).
Next-gen science
The program will again feature the latest in microbiome-related science, including a session dedicated to the potential for the microbiome and probiotics to mitigate environmental pollutants. The session will feature presentations by Professor Stan Kubow (McGill University), Dr. Anna Lindell (Cambiotics),Alan Johnstone (Nutrilution), and Dr Chitong Rao (BluePha), and will cover the latest science relating to mitigation of PFAS, microplastics, and PCBs.
Experts from academia and industry will also cover the opportunities for microbiome modulators to impact longevity and healthspan (Dr. Ohad Manor (Thorne), Shinto Kurosaki (Morinaga Milk Industry), Rahul Sachdeva (Novonesis), and Dr. Gregory Leyer (Synbiotic Health), metabolic health and weight management (Dr Hariom Yadav (USF Center for Microbiome), Dr. Anneleen Segers (The Akkermansia Company), Dr. Peng Guo (BioGrowing), and Mark Walin (Bio-Cat Enzymes & Microbials), and phages and the virome (Dr. Ann Gregory (University of Calgary) and John Beckley (North Caroline State University)).
We’ll also feature presentations about prebiotics when attendees will hear from Dr. Doug Bolster (OLIPOP), Dr. Bradley Saville (University of Toronto), and Michael Steller (Health Canada).
The program will put the companion animal sector under the microscope, with presentations from Ronaldo Avella Lavado (Paul Dick & Associates) and Dr Martha Cline (Nestlé Purina Petcare).
Also noteworthy are the session on women’s health, featuring Caroline Carralero (Daily Nouri), Dr. George Zhou (WeCare Probiotics), Maura MacDonald (Thorne), Lindsay Sumners (ADM), and Jordi Riera (Kaneka Probiotics).
Scientists and innovators compete
Probiota Americas’ annual ‘Scientific Frontiers’ competition—in which NutraIngredients chooses the best research abstracts submitted by students and industry—will see winning entrants present their research on stage.
The winner of the 2026 industry category is Dr. Trevor Kirby, principal research scientist, AG1, who will give a presentation with the title: A preliminary exploration of alternative methods for probiotic enumeration. The winner of our student competition is Rachel Asbury, a PhD student at the University of Toronto, who will present on: High-throughput culturomics reveals prebiotic selectivity within the gut microbiota.
The conference will also host its Probiota Pioneers competition, which will turn the spotlight onto three innovative early-stage companies chosen to showcase their solutions on stage. The 2026 Probiota Pioneers are ClostraBio, Holobiome, and Kioga.
The event will close with a session titled, Innovation in Action, featuring Dr. Jacqueline Jacques (Thrive Advisory Group) and Afif Ghannoum (CPG Radar).
Networking on the agenda
With the event known for its excellent networking opportunities, the agenda will provide a wellness program consisting of a 5k morning run on Day Two to open conversation in an informal setting and wake up delegates for their day of discovery and connection.
The schedule will further provide ample networking breaks and a roundtable lunch to encourage conversation with new and like-minded colleagues, with over 40 roundtable topics to join.
The Probiota Social Evening stands out as the unmissable highlight of the industry’s social calendar, this year taking place at the Stanley Park Brewery located in the historic 1930s Sports Pavilion building in the heart of Vancouver’s Stanley Park.
A noteworthy 92% of those attending the Probiota Americas 2025 event rated the summit as Excellent or Good, and 98% said they would recommend it. Furthermore, 88% of attendees in 2025 said they were planning to return for Probiota Americas 2026. So, don’t miss out! To find out more and to book your ticket, visit the Probiota Americas website HERE.
