Washington, DC—The Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN) trade association is gearing up for a busy October with its 2025 signature events taking place at the Ritz-Carlton, St. Louis. WellComms, Science in Sessions, and Innovation Exchange will all be taking place on October 8 with the main business conference, CONVERGENCE '25, beginning October 9. The events are open to CRN members and nonmembers with admission granting access to breakfast, lunch, and exclusive industry member networking opportunities.

Innovation Exchange 2025

The second annual Innovation Exchange will consist of six 25-minute presentations selected by a committee of experts from Jamieson Wellness, Nestlé Health Science, Pharmavite, Plexus Worldwide, and USANA.

“Innovation Exchange reflects CRN’s commitment to support members' innovation for meeting consumer needs and desires when it comes to their wellness regimens,” said Luke Huber, N.D., MBA, Vice President, scientific and regulatory affairs, CRN, who liaised with the steering committee. “This year’s lineup demonstrates the strength of CRN members in driving progress—from innovations in clinical research methods to microbiome-focused ingredients—and offers attendees a front-row seat to the future of health and nutrition solutions.”

The lineup includes: 

  • Lactobacillus gasseri CP2305, an alternative dietary supplement for mood and sleep through the modulation of the gut microbiome, presented by ADM.
  • Empowering brain health: The nexus of science, form, and dosage, presented by Balchem Corporation.
  • Redesigning nutraceuticals efficacy: How TurmXTRA and Prolanza deliver measurable health gains in small doses, presented by Nutriventia.
  • Precision wellness at scale: Powered by AI and crowdsourced clinical trials, presented by Radicle Science.
  • Metabolaid: A clinically proven botanical targeting blood pressure, satiety hormones, AMPK and the gut microbiome, presented by SuanNutra.
  • Psychobiotics for neurotransmitter regulation: Clinical advances in gut-brain axis interventions, presented by Verb Biotics.

Science in Session

Each edition of the Science in Session conference revolves around a theme. For 2025, “Edge of Innovation: Bioactives to Advance Human Health,” will explore emerging data on prebiotics, postbiotics, polyphenols, botanicals, and other bioactives with consequences for cognitive resilience, women’s health, bone development, and prenatal nutrition.

“Science in Session is where we bring forward-looking research directly to industry leaders,” said CRN Senior Vice President, Scientific & Regulatory Affairs Andrea Wong, Ph.D. “This year’s agenda highlights frontiers in research exploring diverse areas where bioactives and nutrition interventions may support health across the lifespan—from maternal wellness to stress resilience to healthy aging.” 

CRN also shared topics that will be discussed:

  • Role of prebiotics in women’s health and longevity presented by Brenda J. Smith, Ph.D., Indiana University School of Medicine
  • The microbiota-gut-brain axis: mechanisms and the role of postbiotics with Melanie Gareau, Ph.D., University of California, Davis
  • Plant polyphenol metabolites and resilience to stress-induced mood and anxiety hosted by Giulio Maria Pasinetti, M.D., Ph.D., Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
  • Botanical derived progestins and their impact on women’s health with Joanna Burdette, Ph.D., University of Illinois Chicago
  • The influence of dietary phytochemicals on skeletal development and bone growth presented by Jin-Ran Chen, M.D., Ph.D., University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences / Arkansas Children’s Nutrition Center
  • Targeting the developmental origins of metabolic disease in offspring through maternal natural health product supplementation hosted by Todd C. Rideout, Ph.D., State University of New York at Buffalo

“The presentations for CRN’s 2025 Innovation Exchange reveal exciting science-based breakthroughs for forward-looking dietary supplement and functional food formulations,” said Innovation Exchange Steering Committee Member Michael Hartman, Ph.D., VP, research and development at Plexus Worldwide. “We look forward to hearing from these creative, transformational companies on their ahead-of-the-curve innovations and invite industry stakeholders to join us this fall for this exploration.”

For more on the 2025 CRN signature events series, please visit crnusa.org/2025

Related:  Registration Open for CONVERGENCE '25

Highlights from CRN’s 2025 Day on the Hill