Hi George, thanks so much for writing this post! This seems like a great an idea. I’ll try to be unbiased, but given this is the first EA Forum I’ve read about cooking and food, two of my passions, I’ll probably be biased.
This seems like an extremely cool opportunity for impact, although I definitely think it has a high chance of failure, but substantial impact if successful. This definitely falls into the category of very ambitious EA projects, with the small possibility of becoming a version of a self sustaining EA megaproject (aka a company).
It seems from my layman perspective that a for-profit business model is the way to go here, rather than a non-profit campaign. You discuss connecting purveyors/distributors with restaurants, but do those supply chains exist? It seems like you say that rare Chinese tofus are basically non-existent in the US, and that’s my perception as well. If that’s the case, then marketing and creating a campaign promoting these non-traditional tofus might be putting the cart before the horse. You can’t create demand without also creating supply. Although creating a for-profit company becomes a much larger endeavor, it also creates an opportunity to grow much more rapidly and become a self-sustaining force. Additionally, many of your proposals seem like they would fit into a for-profit company as marketing.
As others have commented, I think even your conservative estimates regarding potential growth of the tofu market are wildly optimistic. Tofu is very unpopular to most Americans, so I think achieving any increase in tofu consumption among non-vegans/vegetarians is already a big ask. Nonetheless, I think increasing the quality and options of non-animal protein options is very important for making it easier to eat become vegan/vegetarian or just to eat less meat.
Finally, re this opportunity vs longtermist community building, it seems like you have exceptional personal fit for this opportunity. You clearly have intimate knowledge about the topic and a clear passion for it, so that seems like a strong point in favor of trying it. Plus you would get invaluable experience and career capital out of it.
Hi George, thanks so much for writing this post! This seems like a great an idea. I’ll try to be unbiased, but given this is the first EA Forum I’ve read about cooking and food, two of my passions, I’ll probably be biased.
This seems like an extremely cool opportunity for impact, although I definitely think it has a high chance of failure, but substantial impact if successful. This definitely falls into the category of very ambitious EA projects, with the small possibility of becoming a version of a self sustaining EA megaproject (aka a company).
It seems from my layman perspective that a for-profit business model is the way to go here, rather than a non-profit campaign. You discuss connecting purveyors/distributors with restaurants, but do those supply chains exist? It seems like you say that rare Chinese tofus are basically non-existent in the US, and that’s my perception as well. If that’s the case, then marketing and creating a campaign promoting these non-traditional tofus might be putting the cart before the horse. You can’t create demand without also creating supply. Although creating a for-profit company becomes a much larger endeavor, it also creates an opportunity to grow much more rapidly and become a self-sustaining force. Additionally, many of your proposals seem like they would fit into a for-profit company as marketing.
As others have commented, I think even your conservative estimates regarding potential growth of the tofu market are wildly optimistic. Tofu is very unpopular to most Americans, so I think achieving any increase in tofu consumption among non-vegans/vegetarians is already a big ask. Nonetheless, I think increasing the quality and options of non-animal protein options is very important for making it easier to eat become vegan/vegetarian or just to eat less meat.
Finally, re this opportunity vs longtermist community building, it seems like you have exceptional personal fit for this opportunity. You clearly have intimate knowledge about the topic and a clear passion for it, so that seems like a strong point in favor of trying it. Plus you would get invaluable experience and career capital out of it.