ANAHEIM — Hall E, on the bottom floor of the Anaheim Convention Center, might seem like it’s away from the action. The floor above has four halls with a thousand-plus exhibitors.

However, Hall E is the ideal spot for Boulder startup Mix1 Beverages to display its vitamin- and protein-rich functional beverages, said co-founder James Rouse.

“This is all innovation down here,” said Rouse, a naturopathic physician known in the area as “Dr. James.”

Mix1 and a few local firms were among hundreds of up-and-coming companies that hoped to cut their teeth in the natural products industry by exhibiting in the hall that was dubbed the “Hot Products Hall” of the Natural Products Expo West. The hall featured booths that exhibited “the latest industry crazes,” as described on the natural and organic industry trade show’s Web site.

However, for a variety of reasons, not all ideas turn into home-runs.

Rouse sighed and estimated that a good amount of the companies down in the New Products Hall wouldn’t be here next year. Although driven by hope, the lean operations might not land the right contacts to make ends meet in a growing and highly competitive industry.

Mix1 and the other young local companies not only have to balance their resources to set themselves apart from the growing crowd — one that increasingly includes products and companies funded by multinational businesses — but they have do so in the midst of rising commodity prices and an unfavorable economic environment.

One Boulder startup said its secret ingredient was its homegrown operations.

The months-old Ice Box Bakery, a maker of all-natural cookie dough, was started by two pastry chefs, Jennifer Bush and Allison Patterson. Using the recipes they’ve developed over the years, the two took the roles of designer, publicist and accountant to get the product into the Rocky Mountain region of Whole Foods.

At the Natural Products Expo, they got some help from their spouses. Bush’s husband helped construct the kitchen-esque booth and Patterson’s husband, esteemed Frasca Food and Wine chef Lachlan MacKinnon-Patterson, assisted in manning the booth.

“All of us pitch in,” Allison Patterson said.

The team effort appeared to be working — product buyers from other regions of Whole Foods and from retailers such as Target were interested.

Across the way, Bobo’s Oat Bars founders said all the company’s key ingredients — oats and dried fruits — are getting pricier. The company has not made the leap to pass those costs onto the consumer, but hopes to counteract them by increasing volume and sales.

Natural Products Expo West provided some key opportunities —through meetings with retailers and suppliers — to do just that, said founder Beryl Stafford.

On Sunday morning, Philip Anson, founder of first-time expo exhibitor Phil’s Fresh Foods, took a quick break from heating burritos to reflect on the past two days. With a smile, Anson described the experience as “very good,” adding that “all the big players,” such as Trader Joes’s and Wegmans, popped by to talk business.

The potential for growth is very high, he said.

But the potential does not come without hurdles.

The cost of freight has gone up, he said, adding that the farm subsidies for corn used in ethanol has caused other ingredients to skyrocket, he said.

“My bean farmers are now growing corn,” he said.

Anson rattles off prices per pound of his key ingredients, pausing to describe the situation as “lunacy.”

If things keep on going in this direction, he’ll have to raise his prices, he said.

“I’m sure that we’ll be all right,” he said, “but whether or not a burrito will be $2.99 in five years, that’s another thing.”

Food, overall, tends to absorb the rising prices a little more than other industries, said Steven Hoffman, managing director of the Boulder-based nonprofit The Organic Center. While transportation and distribution have been impacted by rising fuel costs, organic products should not be affected in a disproportionate manner, he said.

During an economic downturn or recession, organic companies typically have fared well, said Bill Wolf, organic industry veteran and co-founder of Virginia-based organic consultant firm Wolf, DiMatteo + Associates. Historic trends and statistics have shown the revenue growth rate within the industry did not change.

Co-founder Katherine DiMatteo said she would expect companies to increase their export market in response. As for consumers, she said, they’ll still probably buy organic, but be selective about which organic products they will put in their grocery baskets.

“It’s going to be interesting to see how we will be affected,” she said.

Contact Camera Business Writer Alicia Wallace at 303-473-1332 or wallacea@dailycamera.com.