Before she was the co‑founder and CEO of Tootie’s Tempeh, Sarah Speare grew up watching her mother advocate for the environment and model what it meant to care for those around her. Years later, that early influence came rushing back when Sarah discovered that tempeh, a staple food for many people choosing plant‑based options, was being fermented in plastic bags. The contradiction unsettled her enough to start experimenting with how to make a tempeh that reflected her values. Sarah’s ambition became the starting point for a local company rethinking tempeh, building stronger ties with local growers, and proving that food can move us toward the future we want to live in.

Q&A as told to CEI by Sarah Speare, in her own words, with minor editing for context.

Can you briefly introduce yourself?

My name is Sarah Speare. I am the co-founder, CEO, and a worker-owner at Tootie’s Tempeh in Biddeford, ME.

What unique skills do you bring to your business?

Before moving to Maine, I ran several nonprofits, all of which were start-ups, or I was the first executive director. When I moved to Maine, I started a pet treat company called Chomp. I’ve had the experience of building something from nothing and taking it all the way. Plus, my nonprofit skills, networking and relationship-building, social impact, grant writing, fundraising, and all those skills are a big support.

Describe Tootie’s Tempeh in one sentence.

We innovated tempeh to taste better, so it’s buttery and nutty with no bitterness, while also eliminating the use of plastic bags in the fermentation process. (Tempeh is a traditional food made from fermented soybeans.)

Why did you start Tootie’s Tempeh?

I got the bug to be an entrepreneur again. I knew I wanted to focus on food for humans, and I wanted it to be a staple food. I focused on plant proteins with an opportunity for growth. I immediately thought of tempeh because it’s not as well-known as tofu, yet it has twice the protein. I immediately found out it was made by fermenting it in plastic bags. I was horrified because I had been eating tempeh for a long time and had no idea how it was made. I named the company after my mom because she was an early environmentalist, a follower of Rachel Carson. Those values, of caring for the planet and doing something about it, were embodied in me by her. Tootie’s Tempeh felt like a wonderful way to honor her legacy. She called everyone “Toots”, so she was nicknamed Tootie.

What has been the greatest challenge so far?

We’ve basically been in two phases. One was the R&D phase of figuring out how to ferment without plastic bags. It wasn’t easy. It took three years, and we made some weird tempeh along the way. We partnered with the Baker Company, a bio-science company in Sanford which was committed to helping us. That is how we were able to launch and prototype using their incubators modified to make tempeh.

Now the challenge is scaling everything because it is a whole new production process. To help with one labor-intensive step, we partnered with the Advanced Manufacturing Center at UMaine to develop and automate a process that we were doing by hand. Now, by scaling the whole packaging process, we have achieved significant efficiencies working with mentors from the Maine Center for Entrepreneurs.

What has been your greatest success so far?

Making tempeh taste better is a huge win for us. If it doesn’t taste good, people aren’t going to buy it. That has been the problem with tempeh; it’s known to have a bitter aftertaste that can keep people away. Ours is non-bitter, nutty, and buttery – the way tempeh is supposed to taste. Not having tempeh fermented in plastic bags is another win for the planet. We’ve already saved over 100,000 plastic bags from going into landfills and oceans. People love our story, too. Our values are really appreciated by people who care about sustainable agriculture. We’re also a worker-owned cooperative, and there are many people who appreciate our support of a more democratic economy.

How has Tootie’s Tempeh grown, and what changes have you seen as a result?

We’ve quadrupled our sales since launching in 2022 and have attracted seven distributors from Maine to New Jersey. We have become spokespersons, representing our values by speaking at different conferences, webinars, and podcasts. That’s part of our mission to show that the co-op model can work. We’re a scalable co-op, which a lot of businesses don’t consider, let alone even have on their radar, to become a cooperative. We’re very involved in the cooperative movement here in Maine and nationally. 

How does Tootie’s Tempeh work with or support Maine’s food system?

Very early on, we joined the Maine Food Convergence, a collaboration of growers, food producers, distributors, institutions, food sovereignty organizations, and anybody in food justice in Maine, focused on how we can work together and support each other to encourage more local foods in the food system. I joined the food processors committee, then served on its steering committee. Eventually, that became a grant to create a platform anyone can use to find farmers, producers, buyers food for gleaning, cold storage, frozen storage, and access to all the different food resources throughout the state.

We have also supported our farmers. We helped Aurora Mills and Farm secure equipment grants so they can split and dehull our soybeans. Our goal is to get 100% of our organic beans from Maine farmers. We also have strong relationships with other Maine food producers. We’re part of the Maine Grains Alliance(MOFGA), and our distributors are intentionally focused on distributing local foods.

Have you introduced any new ideas or innovations that changed Maine’s food or manufacturing industry?

We have two innovations: plastic-free fermentation and our cooperative business model. In terms of the cooperative, it isn’t specific to Maine, but it does mean that the Maine production facility in Biddeford is the first model. Everything we’re doing is designed to be replicated because our vision is to source locally while being a national brand. The vision is to license cooperative production facilities regionally around the country. Each one would be sourcing from local farmers, so wherever Tootie’s Tempeh is purchased, the consumer would be supporting their local farmers, workers, and communities. 

How did you first learn about CEI?

CEI funded Chomp and served on our board, providing support and guidance. When I started Tootie’s Tempeh, I immediately thought of CEI again. Before even seeking funding, we joined a women’s group where about eight of us met for three or four months and gave each other support. They have invested twice in Tootie’s. Bradley Russell (CEI Director of Sustainable Agriculture of Food Systems Program) sits on our board as an observer. She’s wonderful and a big support.

What advice would you give to aspiring business owners like you?

Build a strong team and resources around you. Make sure you have support and never be afraid to ask for what you need. It could be a team of advisors, a board, or people who are doing the same thing in a non-competitive way that you can call upon when you need something. Most important is passion. It will bring others to you and support you. It’s also important to believe in what you’re doing. Be an advocate, educate, and let it embody you. It is not a job, it’s your life.

What excites you most about the future of Tootie’s Tempeh?

The regional Co-op expansion is what excites me the most, our expansion into more stores, colleges, universities and restaurants. We have a new food distributor for restaurants and schools, and we’re excited about that launch. I would also love to get more people writing about us because I don’t think enough people know about Tempeh. Or get them to try ours and compare it to others. We’re a premium tempeh. We taste better. We’re made better. We have values supporting local agriculture. I’m excited about more people learning about us and growing as a worker-owned co-op.

Where do you see Tootie’s Tempeh in 3-5 years?

We have this big goal of becoming as ubiquitous as tofu because you can replace any recipe that has chicken or tofu. If it tastes better, people will start eating it more. Right now, we are the 6th largest tempeh maker in the country. We want to move up a few notches to be the third-largest tempeh maker, certainly in the Northeast. Those are big goals, but we’re committed.

Anything else you want to share about Tootie’s Tempeh?

Just a big shoutout to our team who are in production. Stewart Hewitt is our operations manager, and Trevor LaLiberte and Rayleigh Wyand are just amazing. They make the best tempeh, and they have the highest standards. I appreciate everything they do and feel grateful to have found such incredibly aligned and hardworking coworkers.

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Tootie’s Tempeh is a heartfelt story of how one founder’s values reshaped an entire corner of Maine’s food system. Sarah’s dedication to industry innovation, cooperative leadership, and community-rooted production has guided the business from an experiment in plastic-free fermentation to a model of what sustainable food manufacturing can look like in Maine. Having worked closely with Sarah since the beginning, Bradley Russell, Director of Sustainable Agriculture of Food Systems Program, shares what she sees at the heart of Tootie’s Tempeh:

Looking ahead, Sarah and her team are eager for the regional co‑op expansion, deeper relationships with schools and restaurants, and the chance to introduce more people to tempeh that tastes better and reflects Maine-grown values. With ambitions to open cooperative production facilities around the country—each sourcing locally and supporting their own farmers—Tootie’s Temeph sees a future where tempeh outshines tofu, and where every purchase supports a local community.