| Tofurky Tales (Continued) |
| Monday, 28 February 2011 22:02 | |||
 Hood River, Oregon, February 2011 — We first met our friend Seth Tibbott at the Natural Products Expo West show and convention in Anaheim, California, in the spring of 2005. We knew a little about his product and its success, but nothing of the man behind the miracle. When we got to know him we found him to be a true, down-to-earth straight-arrow guy who had faith in the efficacy of the products he developed, knowing potential customers would benefit from the offerings he and his colleagues produced. www.tofurky.com
But even if you’re familiar with Turtle Island Foods, the umbrella company for the tofu and tempeh products sold all over the place, here are some tidbits you might not be aware of and will find interesting: The early years of the company were fun but financially trying. Partially to save money, Turtle Island Foods moved from its Forest Grove, Oregon location to the small town of Husum, Washington, nestled in the Cascades. To save money over the next eight years in that location, Seth lived in a treehouse, paying $25 a month to rent 3 Douglas fir trees! This helped allow him survive on $300 a month while he developed his vegetarian food business. Then, in 1992, the group moved to their Hood River, Oregon location, into a building that had once been a cannery. During the Thanksgiving holidays in 1995 the company’s fortunes changed forever with the sale of their first 500 Tofurky feasts. The product was first marketed to vegetarians who had indicated they felt “left out on turkey day.” The product garnered a surprisingly large amount of media attention, including a mention on the Today Show. Good texture, flavor and timing had propelled this modest company to market success and mild cultural infamy. Tofurky’s success was fully realized in 2004, when the following question appeared on the syndicated TV show Jeopardy: What is the brand name of the tofu Thanksgiving dinner supplied by entrepreneur Seth Tibbott? Throughout its history, Turtle Island Food products have remained 100% vegan, kosher, contain non-GMO ingredients, contain organic soybeans and tofu and contain no hexane extracted soy isolates or powders. And Seth Tibbott is still very much a part of the operation. For more, please visit: www.tofurky.com. SOURCE: Turtle Island Foods
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