Informa Markets’ New Hope Network has announced that Natural Products Expo West would become a virtual show for 2021 and plans to expand the in-person Natural Products Expo East event to be held in Philadelphia, PA this fall.

In an email, Informa Markets’ New Hope Network stated that while they were hopeful that postponing Expo West 2021 to the end of May would result in being able to convene, “Unfortunately, we have now reached the incredibly difficult decision to cancel the in-person Expo West event this Spring, instead focusing our efforts on an enhanced Expo East event in September, which will serve as the platform for our community to connect in-person in 2021.

“The decision to refocus our efforts on the fall event was reached through careful consideration of current government restrictions, anticipated timelines around re-opening in California and industry feedback. We recognize the tremendous efforts and investments that go into participating in our events, and we know prolonging this decision would have prevented our community from making informed choices on time, budget and resource allocations later in 2021, and beyond.

“While we are unable to meet in-person this May, all of us at New Hope are committed to continue serving and uniting this industry, connecting buyers and brands, and providing new environments for product discovery, networking and education. As we look ahead to brighter days in 2021, we are excited to announce an enhanced Natural Products Expo East to serve both Expo East and West customers this Fall in Philadelphia (Sept. 22-25), as well as the official launch of Natural Products Expo West Virtual Week (May 24-27). We will also be convening the industry for our year-round Spark Change virtual events and are exploring other ways we can meet our community’s changing needs through small, targeted in-person events and more.”

For more information, visit www.npevirtual.com and www.expoeast.com.