Notes from the Field

Notes from the Field Real observations from 30 years at the intersection of nutrition science, branded ingredient strategy, and consumer education.

Most industry conversations about branded ingredients happen in conference rooms. The ones that matter happen in supplement aisles, on Costco demo floors, and in the twelve seconds a consumer spends reading a label before deciding whether to put a product in their cart or back on the shelf.

Notes from the Field is a ten-part series from The Supplement Dietitian covering the questions I find most interesting and most underaddressed in the branded ingredient space. What does a retail visit actually tell you about your marketing program? Does the average consumer understand the difference between a branded ingredient and a generic one? What does it take to evaluate an ingredient partner before you commit? And what separates the handful of ingredients that have achieved genuine consumer recognition from the hundreds that have not?

Each article is drawn from 30 years of direct experience as a Registered Dietitian, Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist, Exercise Physiologist, and Sports Nutritionist, combined with field observations from real retail environments where branded ingredients meet real consumers making real decisions.

This series is written for brand marketers, ingredient partners, retail strategists, nutrition practitioners, and anyone working at the intersection of supplement science and consumer education.

Start with Vol. 1 below, or jump to the topic most relevant to your work.