The woman-owned NYC brand reintroducing Europe’s smooth, velvety style of cottage cheese will exhibit with Startup CPG at the show that first inspired its founder
NEW YORK, NY — [June 4, 2026] — Etelka (eh-TEL-ka), the brand reintroducing cottage cream, today announced it will exhibit at the 2026 Summer Fancy Food Show, June 28–30 at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, as part of the Startup CPG pavilion. For Etelka, the appearance is a homecoming on two fronts: New York City is the brand’s home market, and the Fancy Food Show floor is where the idea for Etelka first took shape.
The concept came to founder Nikki while she was walking the very same show, exploring the specialty aisles and noticing a gap hiding in plain sight. Cottage cheese was everywhere in the wellness conversation, yet the American version — watery, chunky, often tangy — bore little resemblance to the smooth, velvety style Europeans had been making for centuries. Alternatively, brands were blending the curds of cottage cheese, resulting in a thinned, grainy product. She set out to bring that original European tradition back.
The result is cottage cream: made from just two ingredients — farm-fresh milk from grass-fed cows and billions of live active cultures — delivering 18g of protein per serving with a clean, creamy texture and none of the tang, additives, or curds that have kept cottage cheese off modern tables. Naturally high-protein and gluten-free, it’s equally at home in a morning bowl or a savory dip.
“The idea for Etelka was born walking this exact show floor, so coming back as an exhibitor feels surreal,” said Nikki, founder of Etelka. “We’re reintroducing something that’s existed for centuries — we just made it for the way people actually want to eat today. Bringing it home to New York, in front of the buyers and makers who shape what ends up on shelves, is the moment we’ve been building toward.”
Exhibiting alongside Startup CPG places Etelka among a curated community of emerging consumer brands at one of the industry’s most influential gatherings — the Specialty Food Association’s premier product-discovery event, marking its 70th anniversary in 2026 and drawing tens of thousands of buyers, distributors, and press to NYC.
Etelka will be sampling cottage cream, both plain and vanilla bean, throughout the show at the Startup CPG pavilion, Booth #4617A. Buyers, distributors, and press are invited to stop by for a taste and to meet the founder and amazing team.
About Etelka
Etelka (eh-TEL-ka), from the Hungarian word for “nourishing,” is reintroducing Cottage Cream — the smooth, velvety style of cottage cheese Europe has made for centuries, before the watery, chunky American version became the norm.
Made from just two ingredients — farm-fresh milk from grass-fed cows and billions of live active cultures — Etelka delivers 18g of protein per serving with a clean, creamy texture and none of the tang, additives, or curds that have kept cottage cheese off modern tables. Naturally high-protein, gluten-free, and equally at home in a morning bowl or a savory dip, Etelka is built for younger consumers who refuse to choose between indulgent and healthy. Smooth, simple, and genuinely craveable.
Media Contact
Emma Van Zandt
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