Forging the Way: Functional Formularies® Liquid Hope™
For Immediate Release:
Contact:
Robin Gentry McGee, Functional Formularies, robin@functionalformularies.com, 937.271.0381
Steve Hoffman, Compass Natural LLC, steve@compassnatural.com, 303.807.1042
Forging the Way: Functional Formularies® Liquid Hope™ Innovative Organic Whole Foods Meal Replacement Wins NEXTY 2014 People’s Choice Award
Award-winning Liquid Hope by Functional Formularies, the world’s first organic, non-GMO shelf stable whole foods meal replacement and feeding tube formula, is poised for growth in the natural products retail and health care institutional channels.
Wilmington, OH (October 17, 2013) – The combination of revolutionary product and the power of social media placed Liquid Hope—the first organic, non-GMO, shelf stable whole foods meal replacement designed for enteral (feeding tube) delivery produced by Ohio-based Functional Formularies—among a select group of 61 nominees for the 2014 NEXTY Awards.
The winners were announced in time to be showcased at Natural Products Expo East this past September. Liquid Hope won the People’s Choice Award in the Natural, Organic and Functional Foods and Beverages Category.
The NEXTY Awards, powered by Boulder-based New Hope Natural Media in conjunction with the Sterling Rice Group, recognizes companies in the natural products space for their ingenuity and innovation in a given category.
While meal replacements and supplements are a fiercely competitive and growing category—U.S. consumer sales of supplements grew 7.5% to $32.5 billion in 2012—the organic whole foods meal replacement feeding tube category was virtually nonexistent until Liquid Hope came to market. The leading conventional feeding tube formula brands are Nestle and Abbott Nutrition.
Robin Gentry McGee is the Founder and CEO of Functional Formularies, the company behind Liquid Hope. The whole foods meal replacement is the first of a line of products developed by McGee in 2006 in an attempt to help her elderly father recover from a traumatic brain injury. McGee realized the hospital feeding tube formula was comprised mainly of ingredients including corn syrup, soy and sugar that may have been genetically engineered, artificial flavors and other chemicals—“no real food to be found,” she says, and thus began her quest to use food as medicine to help her father.
Food as Medicine
As a seasoned chef, certified health coach and entrepreneur, McGee knows Functional Formularies is an opportunity to “delve into the deeper healing properties of food and share with those in need of alternative forms of nutrition due to illness or digestive issues, or simply a desire to consume nutritious whole foods on a regular basis.”
With an extensive ingredient list of pureed gluten-free, vegan, organic whole foods including green peas, carrots, sprouted quinoa, miso, almond butter, turmeric, rosemary and a proprietary vitamin blend, the meal replacement was originally intended for feeding tube delivery however it’s palatable savory flavor works well for anyone seeking increased daily nutrition through oral consumption.
Currently consumers of Liquid Hope range from children as young as 18 months to the elderly suffering from such illnesses as cancer and Eosinophilic Esophagitis, extreme inflammation of the esophagus.
“Many of my cancer and ALS patients have asked me for a whole foods approach to nutritional support and I have not had anything to give them until now. Liquid Hope is a perfect answer to this problem. It is … made to help improve the health of patients, not add to their illness. I would love to have all my patients on it,” said Lynn Goldstein, MS RD CDN, Clinical Nutrition Supervisor for Beth Israel Comprehensive Cancer Center.
With positive response from health care professionals, McGee would like to see the company launch into the larger health care institutional channel, crossover pharmacies, and the natural products retail marketplace. Retail outlets that emphasize education for the consumer are ideal, says McGee. Liquid Hope, available in 12 oz. shelf-stable pouches, is currently sold at Dorothy Lane Markets, select independent natural products stores and online atwww.functionalformularies.com.
Meet Functional Formularies at the Food and Nutrition Conference & Expo
Functional Formularies will exhibit at the Food and Nutrition Conference and Expo October 19-22 in Houston, TX. For more information visit www.eatright.org/FNCE.
For more information about Functional Formularies or to inquire about selling Liquid Hope in your store or health care practice, please email Functional Formularies or call 937.271.0381.
About Functional Formularies
Founded in 2008 by chef, certified health coach and entrepreneur Robin Gentry McGee, Functional Formularies produces organic whole foods meal replacement products, including Liquid Hope, designed for enteral feeding and oral consumption. The company is founded on the principles of “food as medicine” and is an alternative for patients suffering from a wide range of illness as well as those seeking increased daily nutrition through whole foods. For more information visit www.functionalformularies.com.
Communications by Compass Natural Marketing
info@compassnatural.com 303.807.1042