Divine Desserts by GT's Living Foods

Scott LaPorta is currently the chief commercial and strategy officer of GT’s Living Foods. He previously spent seven years as president of Bolthouse Farms. Scott LaPorta manages all marketing and branding activities at GT’s Living Foods, a provider of healthy foods and drinks, including all natural smoothies. The company also provides recipes for healthy, tasty desserts.

One of the most popular desserts carried by GT’s Living Foods is the gingerberry cupcake served with coconut cream. The recipe, which can be completed in under an hour, consists of nearly two dozen all natural ingredients, including half a cup of GT’s KOMBUCHA Gingerberry, 48 ounces of full fat coconut milk, two tablespoons of dried ginger powder, and one cup of blueberries.

Individuals who are more interested in chocolate-based desserts can try GT’s Living Foods' Chocolate Layered CocoYO Parfait, made with GT’s COCOYO Pure. The unique, easy-to-make dessert includes a unique blend of cocoa powder and avocado, among other delicious ingredients. Additional desserts by GT’s Living Foods range from the Cran-Apple Chia Parfait to the Vegan Raspberry Cheesecake Bites.

A Brief Overview of What Kombucha Is and How It’s Made

With an MBA in finance from the Vanderbilt University Owen Graduate School of Management, Scott Laporta has progressive experience in developing start-ups into multi-national enterprises in the hospitality, gaming, apparel, and natural food and beverage industries. At present, he leads GT’s Living Foods as its chief commercial and strategy officer. Scott Laporta’s role at GT’s Living Foods is focused on promoting the company’s exclusive brand of naturally produced kombucha drinks.

Kombucha is a type of fermented tea produced by a symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast (SCOBY). The SCOBY is brewed into sugar and green or black tea and then fermented for a minimum of a week and up to a month. The resulting taste of the beverage ranges from sweet to tangy according to the length of the fermentation process. Some kombucha drinks are flavor enhanced with the addition of spices, herbs, and fruits, and as a byproduct of fermentation, the drink typically contains 0.5 to 3 percent alcohol. Rich in probiotics, kombucha is reported to enhance overall digestive health and also helps to boost energy levels due to its high levels of vitamin B.

Neuro Trim - Including Fiber Rich, Appetite-Curbing Glucomannan

Scott LaPorta is a well-established Southern California business leader who has guided turnaround efforts at a number of companies. In his present role as neuro Brands president, Scott LaPorta oversees a lineup of lightly carbonated beverages with specific health and lifestyle functions, from Neuro Protein to Neuro Trim.

Neuro Trim is low in calories and rich in antioxidants, and contains green tea extract, L-carnitine, and caffeine. Among the functional fibers contained in Neuro Trim are Fibersol2, chicory root inulin, and glucomannan.

Sourced from konjac roots that grow in northern Japan, glucomannan is a sugar that has a centuries’ old use in Japanese cuisine as a gelling and thickening agent. Able to “sponge up” water within the digestive tract, it expands through this absorption process into a fiber that takes up significant space in the stomach.

The result is both a sense of fullness and a curtailing of the body’s absorption of cholesterol and carbohydrates. In addition, the bulky fiber has a cleansing effect that is effective in controlling blood sugar, decreasing cholesterol, and eliminating constipation as it leaves the body. Within the context of Neuro Trim, this helps alleviate hunger before meals, while adding only a few calories.

Functional Food and Beverages Combine Familiarity and Innovation

A respected presence in the corporate turnaround sphere, Scott LaPorta serves as Neuro Brands’ president. His company offers a full range of functional beverages that promote health and wellness, including Neuro Bliss, Neuro Trim, and Neuro Protein. Scott LaPorta maintains a strong interest in trends in the expanding functional beverages industry.

A recent Nutraceuticals World article brought focus to change drivers in a functional foods and beverages market that features “science-added” benefits. Two coinciding trends are personalization and fragmentation, with products focusing with an ever more fine-tuned brush on specific niches in an industry that encompasses diverse ingredients. This reflects the ability of consumers to go online easily and research and compare products that meet their specific health needs.

With many brands struggling to maintain mass-scale high volume capacities, those that are able to flexibly accommodate emerging trends and create well-packaged, compelling products are the clear winners. New concepts are carefully combined with known quantities, with a current example being those containing prebiotics. With consumers easily confusing prebiotics and probiotics, other “star” ingredients associated with digestive health such as figs or kiwifruits are paired with the core prebiotic ingredient (beneficial bacteria that populate the gut’s microflora). The result is products that capitalize on trends while maintaining the right level of familiarity and accessibility.

Neuro Drinks Helping Americans Achieve Restful Sleep

Over the course of his executive career, Scott LaPorta has helped companies such as Bolthouse Farms to grow revenues and achieve market dominance. Today, Scott LaPorta serves as the president and chief operating officer of Neuro Drinks, a manufacturer of healthy functional beverages such as Neuro Sleep, which helps people sleep better.

Many Americans are finding it hard to achieve restful sleep. Two reasons for this are old age and the proliferation of smartphones. As people grow older, sleeping becomes more difficult. For those who are still young, sleeping is tough when they are constantly staring at screens, even while in bed.

When someone cannot sleep, he or she will try almost anything to get it. As a result, over-the-counter sleep supplements have grown in popularity. One of the brands that have particularly resonated with young consumers is Neuro Sleep. This healthy, liquid dietary supplement combines the benefits of naturally-occurring melatonin with magnesium and L-theanine to relax the body, preparing it for restful sleep. In addition, the drink is low in sugar, vegan, gluten-free, and lactose-free.

Neuro Sleep Helps Active People Sleep Better for Improved Performance

Previously the president of Bolthouse Farms, Scott LaPorta steered the company to achieve top market share in the super premium refrigerated juice business. Currently, Scott LaPorta serves as the president and COO of Neuro Drinks, which manufactures functional drinks such as Neuro Sleep to help active people sleep better.

A good night’s sleep can be the difference between peak performance and sluggishness during the day. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends at least seven hours of sleep per night for adults. A mere 90-minute reduction in sleep time can result in a 32 percent reduction of daytime alertness.

Sleep is particularly important for peak athletic performance. According to Olympic swimming gold medalist Conor Dwyer, athletes who sleep less compromise their performance. This is because the body breaks down muscles during training and rebuilds them during rest. Inadequate sleep time, therefore, means insufficient muscle recovery.

Neuro Sleep was specifically designed to help active people get a good night’s sleep. Combining naturally occurring melatonin with L-theanine, 5-hydroxytryptophan, and essential minerals such as magnesium, Neuro Sleep prepares the body for rest and regulates the circadian rhythm, enabling active persons to achieve restful sleep.

Neurobrands Develops into Leading Source of Healthy Drinks

Southern California-based Scott LaPorta currently serves as the president of Neurobrands, LLC, a company dedicated to offering high-quality beverages that fit the lifestyles of active, health-conscious consumers. His extensive previous work helming companies such as Bolthouse Farms demonstrated his focus on innovation and expansion in the healthy beverage industry. Now, Scott LaPorta’s focus at Neurobrands involves continuing the work begun by the company’s founder, Sanela Diana Jenkins.

Ms. Jenkins established Neurobrands in 2009. As a businesswoman and philanthropist, she hoped to broaden the possibilities of the market by producing alternatives to the many highly sweetened and overly caloric drinks available. The company, anchoring its products in a customer-centered philosophy of “better for you,” began to build up a strong network of distributors across the United States.

With only 35 calories per drink, Neurobrands works to deliver sustainable energy using vegan and gluten- and lactose-free ingredients. Its proprietary combination of neuro-friendly ingredients includes L-Theanine (a green tea derivative believed to help reduce stress) along with relaxing chamomile, Vitamins C and D, and the naturally-occurring chemical alpha GPc, thought by some researchers to have a positive effect on human memory.

Neurobrands continues to pride itself on its commitment to investing in capital-intense processes designed to produce superior formulations. Today, customers can find drinks featuring the Neuro logo in local convenience stores and large supermarkets nationwide.

Mineral Water Provides Health Benefits

Business executive Scott LaPorta is the president and CEO of Neuro Brands, a California-based functional beverage company. Scott LaPorta brings experience and innovation to his role at Neuro Brands. The company offers a line of beverages that include a high-quality mineral water called Aqua.

The benefits of staying hydrated are well known and documented. Consuming an adequate amount of water improves cardiovascular health, maintains digestion, firms the skin, and helps joint and muscle function. While tap water can meet the body’s basic hydration needs, mineral water provides additional benefits. 

Depending on its source, mineral water contains various levels of minerals that can improve a person’s overall health. Most mineral waters contain calcium, which promotes bone strength and muscle function, and magnesium, which is necessary for energy production and helps regulate blood sugar and blood pressure. 

Some mineral waters contain iron, sulfate, chloride, and bicarbonates. Generally speaking, mineral water provides up to four times more helpful minerals than tap water.

Alpha Synchronization - Enabling Attentiveness and Creativity

Having guided a number of IPOs and corporate turnarounds, Scott LaPorta leads Neuro Brands as president and oversees a full lineup of wellness-focused functional beverages. One of the popular products of Scott LaPorta’s company is Neuro BLISS, which promotes stress reduction through natural ingredients such as chamomile, alpha GPC, and L-theanine, which is derived from green tea. 

Neuro BLISS has been researched in a university setting and found to enable increased alpha synchronization, which involves a shifting of neural impulses toward attentiveness and a “relaxed state of mental function.”

One groundbreaking EEG study by researchers at the University of Graz in Austria describes a shift in understanding of the process of alpha activity synchronization from one of “cortical idling” to active internal processing. Frontal alpha synchronization can be observed when creative tasks are performed and is correlated with the elevated processing demands that accompany creative thinking. 

Another study tied alpha oscillations to processes as diverse as attention, perception, and semantic memory, although questions remain as to their exact functional significance. One theory advanced is that alpha synchronization signals other parts of the brain that the alpha system is in a state of readiness for processing information, rather than simply inhibiting cortical areas not relevant to tasks at hand.

The Neuro Drinks Business Model

Scott Laporta is an expert in the natural and functional beverage industries who managed a product line that generated over $825 million in annual revenue while president of Bolthouse Farms. Scott Laporta now applies his business and marketing expertise as the president of Neuro Brands, the maker of Neuro Drinks.

A California based firm, Neuro Brands was founded in 2009 and currently offers seven different Neuro Drinks that each provide different functional health benefits. Recently, Mr. Laporta discussed the firm’s business practices and how they have contributed to its growth in an interview with Business View Magazine. 

A core component of the Neuro Drinks business model is the constant innovation and development of products that deliver immediate benefits. When creating new drinks, the firm focuses on areas where consumer needs are going unmet. Structurally, the majority of Neuro’s employees focus on sales, while distribution is handled through a national distributor. This focus on sales complements the firm's retail efforts which include the placement of product directly in front of consumers and the distribution of circulars and mail advertisements. In addition, Neuro utilizes social media and e-commerce platforms including Facebook, Instagram, and Amazon to reach additional market segments.

Live Naturally Features Neuro Brands’ Healthier Functional Beverages

A respected Southern California entrepreneur, Scott LaPorta previously served as an executive at Bolthouse Farms, Levi’s, Park Place Entertainment, Hilton, and Marriott where he built a strong track record in turnarounds, IPOs, and acquisitions. Since early 2017, Scott LaPorta has guided Neuro Brands, a premier healthier functional beverage company, as president. The company inhabits several rapidly expanding categories, including sleep, relaxation, energy, and digestive health. 

The summer 2017 issue of Live Naturally featured Neuro products in an article titled “Smart Sips,” which highlighted functional drinks that go beyond simple hydration and energy in the benefits they provide. Recommended for its low-sugar, low-calorie commitment, the Neuro Brand lineup is also distinguished by its use of natural extracts to provide flavoring. 

The article singled out white raspberry-flavored Bliss, which promotes relaxation, and mellow mango-flavored Sleep, which contains the naturally derived ingredient melatonin. Lychee-flavored Trim is ideal for those seeking a boost that aligns with weight management goals, while citrus-flavored Daily provides immune support. 

The latter drink is the only one in the lineup that does not contain L-Theanine, which is found in green tea and addresses high blood pressure and anxiety. Instead, Daily includes aloe vera and essential vitamins and minerals such as vitamin C, vitamin D, and zinc.

The Neapolitan Pizza

Currently the president of Neuro Drinks, Scott LaPorta uses his extensive CPG experience and collaborative leadership skills to develop and execute this beverage company's growth initiatives. In addition to his professional endeavors, Scott LaPorta enjoys cooking Italian cuisine. 

When one thinks of their favorite Italian dish, pizza often tops the list. The pizza of Italy however, looks much different than what most Americans have delivered to their homes for birthday parties and family gatherings. True Italian pizza originated in Naples, Italy, a coastal town with a large number of working poor. These citizens, in need of an inexpensive dish that could be eaten quickly, developed what eventually became known as Neapolitan pizza.

The pizzas originally consisted of flatbreads that were topped with tomatoes, cheese, olive, oil, anchovies, and garlic. The recipe changed little over the years, but the dish became more and more popular with visitors to the area. Wealthy visitors even started seeking out the poorer parts of town in order to sample Neapolitan pizza. One notable visitor was Queen Margherita who was especially taken with the dish that eventually became known as the Margherita pizza. With its tomatoes, fresh basil, and fresh mozzarella, the pizza reflected the colors of Italy’s flag.

When trying to discern if a pizza is cooked in true Neapolitan style, a discerning diner will notice fresh ingredients and a thin crust with a small amount of charring around the top edges. True Neapolitan pizzas are usually about ten to 12 inches in diameter and are cooked at extremely high temperatures in a stone oven over a wood fire for about 90 seconds. 

Today, the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana certifies pizzerias that serve true, authentic Neapolitan pizzas. In order to be certified, the establishment must pass a stringent set of criteria.

Three Crucial Biographies of United States Presidents

As the former president of Bolthouse Farms, Scott Laporta led a fresh vegetable and premium refrigerated beverage and salad dressing business with annual sales of more than $800 million. Outside of Scott Laporta’s professional life, he enjoys reading and is particularly fond of presidential biographies. 

Over the decades, biographies detailing the lives of former presidents have become standard fare for history and politics buffs alike, but here are three crucial offerings every American should consider reading. 

1. Thomas Jefferson & Sally Hemings: An American Controversy - This biographical argument, penned by Annette Gordon-Reed, persuasively plead the case for the third president fathering multiple children with one of his slaves, Sally Hemings. The book threw historians and Jefferson scholars for a loop, and its assertions were later backed up by DNA evidence, confirming that Hemings’ descendants were, in fact, fathered by Thomas Jefferson. 

2. Lincoln - There are so many Lincoln biographies written to this day that awards exist specifically to honor authors who write about this pivotal president. Harvard historian David Herbert Donald’s “Lincoln” sets itself apart from the pack by aiming to demythologize the 16th president, examining his stumbles and failures as much as his notable successes. 

3. The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt - The first of Edmund Morris’ three-part biography of Theodore Roosevelt is considered by the New York Times to be “one of the best biographies of the 20th century.” In its official review of the Pulitzer Prize-winning biography, the reviewer praises it as a “sweeping narrative” and “shrewd examination” of the 26th president. The book’s influence was so great that President Reagan asked Edmund Morris to write his own biography.