The Peculiar Truth about the Creator of Tofurky

• In the 1980s, being vegan was rare. Tofu and other plant-based foods could only be found at health food co-ops, not at your local grocery store.

• Teaching naturalism, or the study of nature, was equally uncommon.

• Both were scoffed at by most Americans as hippie ideals.

• The founder of Tofurky, the plant-based turkey alternative, was a vegan and a naturalist.

• And he lived in a tiny tree house.

• 1980: Seth Tibbot lived in Oregon behind a food co-op. To earn money, he made tempeh, a soy-based food, and sold it to local health food stores under the label of Turtle Island Foods.

• Eventually, a distributor sold his tempeh to stores in the Western US, and Tibbot’s business grew. But not much.

• He then turned an abandoned school into his tofu and tempeh kitchen.

• Tibbot needed a home. So he built a 300-square-foot treehouse.

• That was where he lived for 7 years.

• “When I married my wife,” Tibbot said, “she made me come down from the tree.”

• Profits from his tempeh business were almost non-existent. In a nine year span, his little operation earned him less than $35,000. That wasn’t his annual salary. That was the grand total in nine years. A poverty level existence.

• Yet he kept at it.

• 1995: Tibbot noticed how, except from side dishes, there were no vegan options at Thanksgiving. He formulated and developed an admittedly crazy idea.

• Tofurky hit the market.

• The rounded “field roast” is essentially seasoned tofu made to taste like turkey. It has a stuffing in the middle of brown rice and bread.

• The strange vegan “turkey” became the butt of countless jokes, and the news media loved reporting on the weird food. That turned out to be free advertising.

• As a result, the original Tofurky roast has been sold at holiday time for over 25 years.

• The company went on to consistent profits of over $10 million annually.

• Today, the Tofurky brand has about 35 plant-based products that include sausages, burgers, and cold cuts, and they can be found in virtually every supermarket.

• Tibbot is now in his 70s and he handed over the company reins a few years ago.

• In 2023, a Japanese firm purchased Tofurky for over $50 million.

• Not bad for a hippie vegan who lived in a treehouse.