Hardware Podcasts

Meat Stick Who? How TofuGo Turned Tofu Into a Viral Protein Snack

The Startup CPG Podcast · 18 Sept 2026 · 25m · Episode 368

What this episode covers

Caroline Dai, founder of TofuGo, explains how she launched a savory, whole-food protein snack just five months ago, leveraging her Chinese heritage to create a shelf-stable tofu product with 12 grams of protein per pack. She details the brand's rapid growth, including a viral living-room video that garnered 350,000 views and expansion into over 40 U.S. states and Canadian provinces, driven by strong in-store velocity data. Dai discusses the ancient culinary techniques used to remove water content for preservation, the strategic choice to maintain only two SKUs (Soy Barbecue and Spicy Chili), and the packaging design inspired by Chinese red envelopes. The conversation covers their upcoming Amazon launch, Q4 UK expansion driven by inbound demand, and advice for early-stage founders on authentic content creation.

Most relevant to

early-stage companies

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
Whole Foods, Amazon, Startup CPG
Products
TofuGo, Midday Squares

Related episodes from other shows

Other shows on the same ground, closest first.

  • How I Built This · 48m

    Live Episode! Tofurky: Seth Tibbott (2019)

    Seth Tibbott, founder of Tofurky, recounts building a plant-based protein company over four decades, starting with tempeh in the 1980s and pivoting to the Tofurky roast in 1995. He details his early struggles, including living in a treehouse and operating for years without profit, before achieving national distribution and $40 million in annual sales. Tibbott explains how he refined the product recipe using seitan and tofu, maintained family ownership to protect the company's mission, and expanded into deli slices and sausages.

    Starting a product companyValidation & product-market fit
    6 chapters

  • People of Packaging · 1h 10m

    350 - Beyond the Dieline - Dr Juan from PNuff Crunch joins Tom Seymour

    Dr. Juan Salinas, founder of Pnuff Crunch, discusses his transition from food science roles at Nabisco, Cadbury, Kraft, and Nestle to launching his own functional snack brand. He details the operational challenges of scaling production, specifically the costly mistake of over-purchasing long-run packaging film rolls and the strategic pivot to digital printing and smart plate design to manage inventory. Salinas also recounts his viral Shark Tank appearance, where Mark Cuban’s intervention saved the pitch, leading to Cuban’s investment, and explains how Pnuff Crunch’s high-protein, high-fiber formulation targets modern dietary trends including GLP-1 companion foods.

    Crowdfunding & preordersPricing, margins & unit economics
    7 chapters

  • How I Built This · 1h 07m

    Dang Foods: Vincent and Andrew Kitirattragarn

    Vincent and Andrew Kitirattragarn, co-founders of Dang Foods, explain how they scaled their Asian-inspired snack brand from a home kitchen experiment to over 10,000 retail locations. Vincent details the origin of their coconut chips and the strategic pivot to rice crackers and keto-friendly energy bars, while Andrew discusses the operational challenges of scaling production and managing supply chain disruptions. The brothers recount the costly failure of their vacuum-fried onion chips, the serendipitous boost from social media influencers, and the internal family dynamics that required therapy to resolve as they grew the company.

    Validation & product-market fitPricing, margins & unit economics
    9 chapters

  • People of Packaging · 47m

    354 - Beyond the dieline with the incomparable Jake Karls from Mid-Day Squares

    Jake Karls, co-founder of Mid-Day Squares, explains how the company evolved from hand-making bars in a condo kitchen to building a custom manufacturing facility producing 150,000 squares daily after facing rejection from 26 co-packers. He details the strategic decision to place their refrigerated snacks in the fresh aisle to avoid the 'sea of sameness' in dry nutrition bars and discusses the launch of their viral 'No-Bread PB&J' line, which was developed to mitigate cocoa price surges. Karls emphasizes the importance of radical social media transparency and storytelling to build an emotional connection with consumers, turning early pandemic crises into growth opportunities by going 'on offense.'

    Scaling productionMarketing & brand
    7 chapters

  • People of Packaging · 39m

    214 - Alex Cree on how he met Mark Cuban and innovated a new food product

    Alex Cree, co-founder of Baozza, explains how he combined Chinese bao buns with pizza toppings to create a unique food product, starting with pop-ups in China and securing investment from Mark Cuban. The company faced significant packaging challenges when transitioning to the US market, specifically finding microwave-safe, steamable bags that could be flow-wrapped by American co-packers. Despite pandemic-related supply chain disruptions forcing them to source packaging locally at higher costs, Baozza successfully launched in major US retailers like Sprouts and Target.

    Materials & manufacturing processesManufacturing partners & offshoring
    7 chapters

The summary, chapters and topics are generated from the episode’s audio by this directory, not written by The Startup CPG Podcast. The episode itself belongs to its publisher.