Ua hoʻokumu ʻia ʻo Tofoo Co, e ka wahine Pelekane ʻo David Knibbs lāua ʻo Lydia Smith, ua wehewehe hou i ka tofu ma UK, e hoʻolilo ana i kēia mea hoʻohui kuʻuna ʻAsia i huahana kaulana a kaulana me ka 62% o ka māhele mākeke ma 2024. ʻO ka mea kupanaha hou aku, ʻo kā lākou hana hou wiwo ʻole—ka hoʻokuʻu ʻana i ka tofu nui XXL (750g) e like me nā lole, kahi neʻe i hopu i ka manaʻo o nā mea kūʻai.
I ka makahiki 2016, ua loaʻa i ka hui kahi hale hana tofu liʻiliʻi me ka loaʻa kālā makahiki he £600,000 wale nō. I ka makahiki 2025, ua hoʻonui lākou iā ia i kahi ʻoihana £32 miliona, e kūʻē ana i ka emi ʻana o 7% o ka māhele ʻai ʻole o UK me ka piʻi ʻana o ka loaʻa kālā he 19%. Loaʻa ko lākou holomua mai ka hoʻoponopono ʻana i nā pilikia koʻikoʻi o nā mea kūʻai aku Pelekane: "tofu phobia" - i hoʻokumu ʻia e ka tofu wai nui e pono ai he 30 mau minuke o ke kaomi ʻana ma mua o ka kuke ʻana, a me kahi kiʻi brand palaualelo a hiki ʻole ke hoʻokokoke ʻia. He 8% wale nō o nā ʻohana UK i ʻai i ka tofu i ka makahiki 2023, akā naʻe ua ʻike ʻo David i ka hiki nui ma ka hoʻohālikelike ʻana iā ia me ka mākeke tofu US he £175 miliona, e kuhi ana i ka waiwai i hoʻohana ʻole ʻia o UK ma £40 miliona (vs. ka £7 miliona maoli i kēlā manawa).
Ma ka hoʻohana ʻana i ko lākou mau makahiki he ʻumi o ka ʻike ma FMCG—ʻo David ma ke kūʻai aku ma Mars a ʻo Lydia ma ke kūʻai liʻiliʻi ma Arla—ua hoʻoponopono hou lākou i ka huahana mua. Ma ka hoʻohana ʻana i ka coagulant nigari Kepani kuʻuna ma kahi o ka calcium sulfate, ua hana lākou i ka tofu paʻa loa me ka wai i kaomi mua ʻia, e "wehe a hoʻohana". Hāʻawi ka ʻōpala a me ka pūnaewele kūhelu i nā alakaʻi maʻalahi, kēlā me kēia ʻanuʻu: hoʻokahe, ʻokiʻoki, kuke, hauʻoli, me ʻeono mau ʻano hoʻomākaukau (cube, crumble, tear, etc.) a me nā meaʻai kaila Komohana e like me ka tofu pizza a me ka curry, e hoʻohui ana i ka tofu i loko o nā ʻano ʻai Pelekane.
Ua ʻoi like ko lākou hoʻolālā hele-i-ka-mākeke. Ua hoʻokomo nā pilina kūʻai aku a Lydia iā lākou i loko o 2,000 mau hale kūʻai Tesco i ka makahiki 2016. Ua hōʻoiaʻiʻo lākou i nā mea kūʻai aku me ka ʻikepili Kantar a me kahi hihiʻo e hoʻonui i ka māhele, ʻaʻole wale e hoʻokūkū. Me ke kumukūʻai he £2.30 no kahi ʻeke 280g—waena waena ma ka māhele ʻai ʻole—ua lilo kā lākou Naked Tofoo i SKU kūʻai maikaʻi loa ma ka mākeke tofu ma 2023, e hoʻonui ana i nā supermarkets nui a pau o UK a ʻike i ka ulu ʻana o 100% ma ke kahawai lawelawe meaʻai ma 2025.
Ua kālele ke kūʻai aku ʻana ma nā ʻono i loko o ka hale kūʻai, me ka piʻi ʻana o 89% i ka hoʻolilo kālā ʻana ma 2024—ua manaʻoʻiʻo lākou "ua lanakila ka nahu ʻana i hoʻokahi tausani hoʻolaha". ʻAʻole e like me nā lama mea kanu ʻē aʻe i hoʻohālike i ka ʻiʻo, ua hoʻonoho ʻo The Tofoo Co i ka tofu ma ke ʻano he mea hoʻohui kūʻokoʻa me kahi leo leʻaleʻa a haʻahaʻa: ʻaʻohe leka eco-messaging haʻi'ōlelo, he kope hoʻomākeʻaka wale nō, pili e like me "He hewa kēia pela ʻana. Pēlā nō kēia ʻōlelo. Akā, ʻaʻole ʻo Tofoo."
ʻO ka hana hou o ka huahana ko lākou hiʻohiʻona. Hāʻawi lākou i ka tofu i nā nui e like me ke kapa (280g, 450g, 750g XXL) a hoʻokuʻu i ka tofu hau mua o UK, me nā ʻano "lazy tofu" i hoʻomoʻa mua ʻia, ʻoki mua ʻia—ua puhi ʻia, sriracha, a me ka tofu i kāwili ʻia e like me nā hua manu. ʻO ka ʻōpala wiwo ʻole a poloka me nā waihoʻoluʻu ʻōlinolino a me ka hōʻailona nui e kū nei ma nā papa, me nā kuhikuhi hoʻohana maopopo i paʻi pololei ʻia ma luna.
Me ka hoʻopukapuka kālā mai ka waihona kālā Kelemania ʻo Comitis Capital i ka makahiki 2024, ua hoʻonui ʻo The Tofoo Co i nā hale kūʻai nui loa o Farani i ka makahiki 2025 a loaʻa iā ia ka mea hana mea kanu Kelemania ʻo Topas i ka makahiki 2026, e loaʻa ana ke komo ʻana i kāna pūnaewele hoʻolaha ʻEulopa no kahi hoʻomaka Kelemania. Hoʻonohonoho kēia i ke kahua no kahi kaua tofu ʻEulopa, me ka brand Korea ʻo Pulmuone e nānā pū ana i ka mākeke—akā naʻe, ʻo Kina, kahi hānau o ka tofu, ʻaʻole naʻe i loaʻa.
Hāʻawi ka huakaʻi a Tofoo Co i nā haʻawina koʻikoʻi no nā lama meaʻai kuʻuna Kina: aia ka globalization i ka hoʻomaʻalahi ʻana i ka hoʻohana ʻana, ka hoʻonohonoho ʻana i nā meaʻai kūloko, a me ke kūkulu ʻana i kahi lama ʻōpio a hiki ke hoʻokokoke ʻia. E like me ka wehewehe hou ʻana o Lipton i ke kī Kina, ua noʻonoʻo hou ʻo Tofoo Co i ka tofu—e hōʻoia ana e hiki i nā meaʻai kahiko ke lanakila i nā puʻuwai honua me ka hana hou akamai. ʻO ka ikaika o Kina i ka hana ʻono, i hui pū ʻia me ka hōʻailona hou, hiki ke hoʻolilo iā ia i alakaʻi tofu honua. A ʻo ke komo ʻana o Tofoo Co i Kina he "catfish" paha e hoʻāla i kahi nalu hou o ka hana hou i ka ʻoihana tofu o Kina.
Ka manawa hoʻouna: Malaki-20-2026