Nutritional Outlook Returns with the Second Annual "The Outlook on Active Nutrition," Bringing Industry Leaders Together to Explore What's Next in Performance, Wellness, and Longevity

Nutritional Outlook®, the leading industry resource for nutraceuticals and natural products, announced the second annual "The Outlook on Active Nutrition," a 1-day event dedicated to unpacking the trends, science, and formulation strategies shaping the active nutrition category. The event will take place on Thursday, September 24, 2026, at the National Conference Center in East Windsor, New Jersey.

Following a successful inaugural event in 2025, The Outlook on Active Nutrition returns with an expanded agenda addressing some of the category's most consequential shifts, from the rise of GLP-1 companion nutrition to the growing intersection of longevity science and performance formulation. As active nutrition continues to broaden beyond elite athletes to everyday wellness consumers, product manufacturers and ingredient suppliers face increasing pressure to substantiate claims, differentiate formulations, and respond to fast-moving consumer demand.

"With the first annual The Outlook on Active Nutrition, Nutritional Outlook set out with the modest goal of bringing experts and industry stakeholders together for a day of science, actionable insights, and networking,” says Sebastian Krawiec, managing editor of Nutritional Outook. “The positive response to that first event proved to us that industry was eager for smaller-scale, more focused live events that prioritize science and expert insights free of marketing fluff. Our goal as always is to be a resource for our audience, and we’re proud of the lineup of experts and content that we have planned for this year’s event that will help brands navigate the evolving active nutrition landscape.”

The Outlook on Active Nutrition will feature insights from experts across sports nutrition, longevity science, regulatory affairs, and market research, including speakers from the University of South Carolina, Thorne, PricePlow, Rutgers University, SPINS, and more.

Nutritional Outlook is proud to once again partner with SPINS and Women in Nutraceuticals (WIN), and welcomes the Future Nutra Foundation and TruShield as new partners. We’d like to also welcome Douglas Kalman, PhD, RD, co-founder of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, and clinical associate professor of sports nutrition at Nova Southeastern University, as this year’s program chair.

“I am grateful to be playing a more active role at The Outlook on Active Nutrition,” notes Kalman. “The content we have planned for this year’s event represents some of the most important topics facing sports and active nutrition today, and the program creates a crucial opportunity for dialogue and collaboration between leading experts and manufacturers

so that industry can lead with science and integrity.”

Featured Sessions Include:

Keynote: Formulating for Champions

Michelle Arent, RD, MPH, CSCS, CISSN, director of Olympic sports at the University of South Carolina, translates the daily realities of fueling Olympic-sport athletes into a clear scorecard for supplement manufacturers. She'll outline how she approaches the use of dietary supplements in her day-to-day work, explain where third-party testing, dosing accuracy, and practical usability still fall short of what her staff and athletes require, as well as highlight the innovation and science that excite her. Speaking directly to the people that build active nutrition products, Arent’s keynote address is an opportunity for industry to understand where they can invest their resources to develop trustworthy and effective products that meet the highest standards.

The GLP-1 Companion Market: Formulating for Muscle Preservation

Douglas Kalman, PhD, examines how the rise of GLP-1 receptor agonists has created demand for companion nutrition formulated to protect lean muscle mass during rapid weight loss, and what that means for nutraceutical manufacturers in the active nutrition space.

The Cellular Athlete: Bridging the Gap Between Longevity Science and High-PerformanceFormulation

Joey Savage,CEO and president of Savage Nutra, explores how NAD+ precursors, senolytics, and mitophagy activators are being integrated into sports recovery formulations as the category shifts toward long-term healthspan optimization.

Empowering the Female Athlete: Science-Led Formulation and the Power of Authentic Partnership

Maura MacDonald, MS, RD, CSSD, LDN, medical education specialist at Thorne, discusses the opportunity for manufacturers to move beyond one-size-fits-all formulation and address the physiological needs specific to female athletes.

Building Credible Science-Backed Brands in Active Nutrition

Diana Morgan, MS, CISSN, chief catalyst and founder of Pink Catalyst Consulting, examines how influencer-driven brands can evolve from personality-led marketing to evidence-backed brand building without sacrificing authentic storytelling.

Peptides at the Crossroads: Drugs, Supplements, and the Fight for Legitimacy

Ben Kane, president and co-owner of PricePlow, unpacks the regulatory and classification challenges facing peptides as they sit at the intersection of pharmaceutical innovation, dietary supplementation, and biohacking culture.

Optimizing Collagen Protocols for Elite Collegiate Athletics

Katie Salomone, MS, RD, CSSD, CEDS, director of sports nutrition at Rutgers University, shares how collagen supplementation protocols are developed and implemented for collegiate athletes in training and post-operative recovery, highlighting gaps and opportunities for ingredient and finished product manufacturers.

Finding White Space: Market Trends and Opportunities in Active Nutrition

Rahul Roy, director of vitamin and specialty retail at SPINS, closes the day with a data-driven presentation and expert panel discussion (featuring Savage, Kane, and more) that will identify untapped growth areas and unmet ingredient demands within active nutrition.

With the active nutrition category continuing to expand across performance, wellness, and everyday lifestyle, The Outlook on Active Nutrition is your opportunity to get ahead of the latest trends and learn the latest science to bring innovative and effective products to a wide range of consumers.

For more information and to register, visit the event website.