Seaweed is the new kale; hemp milk is replacing almond milk; non-GMO products are in; gluten-free is yesterday and matcha is the new “it” product, according to the trend-spotters at Swanson Health Products (www.SwansonVitamins.com), one of the leading online retailers of organic groceries, vitamins and supplements.

“We are able to identify trends in customer purchasing from various sources within our company,” said Swanson CEO Ken Harris. “Swanson carries almost 30,000 products and is able to track purchasing habits on all of them. We not only offer 600 teas -- we can tell you what’s trending in tea and how our customers are buying it.”

Additional trend-spotting reveals more new snacks made with ancient grains; herbs being used to handle stress; extra-virgin coconut oil is the new extra-virgin olive oil; lactose-friendly, vitamin-rich ghee is starting to replace butter; vegetarian products are on the rise, while the sale of vegan products has slowed slightly. And speaking of butter… organic nut butters are on the rise.

When Swanson transformed its manufacturing and distribution center with über modern equipment, it became one of the sleekest operations in the industry. However, its marketing still lingered in the last century, depending primarily on a mail-order catalog and some website sales. After a massive transformation of its marketing, Swanson is now a leading edge digital marketer with 84% of its sales coming on-line and over 50% of its web traffic coming from mobile.