People often think SoyBoy is in the business of making “fake meat” — plant protein that’s designed to fool them into thinking they’re eating real animal meat. Nowadays there are numerous plant-based choices, ranging from simple, minimally processed foods to highly sophisticated products of food technology. Though it’s fascinating to see what modern food science makes possible, SoyBoy hangs out at the other end of the spectrum: we specialize in making simple, naturally healthy foods from traditional ingredients.

Simple, Celebrated Plant Proteins

In their countries of origin, tofu and tempeh products stand on their own as sources of dietary protein and they are celebrated for their own unique flavor-absorbing properties. In this spirit, at SoyBoy our ingredient lists are short and easy to pronounce. Most SoyBoy products are made using methods that have been around for hundreds (or thousands) of years. These time-tested methods drive our mission to make simple vegan foods that are healthy, delicious, and natural.

Modern Meat Alternatives

On the other end of the food science spectrum, you’ll find true meat analogs. These products are designed to painstakingly emulate animal flesh in texture and flavor. Some even include special effects: they drip with imitation vegan “blood.” To make real this experience of “sparing the cow and eating it, too” requires the most advanced food technology the world has ever seen. While these analogs are impressive, it’s not what we’re about at SoyBoy — which is “Eat healthy and spread the love.”

Where We Fit In

Do we make a vegan hot dog and veggie bacon? Sure, but they aren’t designed to fool anyone. No one is going to think that our Not Dogs or Veggie Bacon are made from pork. We’ve created these plant-based foods so vegans and vegetarians can eat at a barbeque or have a BLT sandwich just like everyone else. They’re NOT fake meat, they’re REAL Not Dogs and REAL Veggie Bacon!

Engineering Enjoyment

One of the reasons we enjoy promoting tofu and tempeh is that science has proven their health benefits over centuries. Although new high-tech meat-like foods allow meat lovers to eat vegan, the benefits don’t necessarily extend much further. Many of these lab-derived plant proteins are high in calories, saturated fat, and sodium, and contain genetically modified ingredients – not a healthy option for everyday eating. And while we are happy that vegans and vegetarians have more dietary options, engineering vegan meat just isn’t for us.

40 Years of Focus

Over the last four decades, SoyBoy has earned a loyal and ever-growing base of true fans based on two factors: high-quality food and flavor. We’re not the biggest brand; not by a long shot. Do we mind? Only because our small size limits our reach. It will probably take us a while to reach the Canadian fans who stock up their chest freezers every time they set foot stateside, or the people in California pining for smoked tofu. Despite these limitations, the enthusiasm of this devoted following has sustained SoyBoy through 42 years of innovation and fierce competition in the natural foods industry. It’s given us the opportunity to focus on creating great, stable jobs and an extremely safe working environment for our employees. It’s allowed us to stay true to our ideal that small is beautiful and to keep doing what we do best – creating healthy products for people that love them.

In closing, we hope the SoyBoy story can inspire you to enjoy the simple beauty of perfectly prepared tofu and tempeh. We are extremely grateful for your support!