Putting the plant back in plant-based
Lettuce tacos made with CHi Foods
PHOTO: Courtesy
Putting the plant back in plant-based
By Debra Herrick
CO-FOUNDERS AND ROMANTIC PARTNERS Tucker Garrison ’11 and Philip Matthew Richardson ’13 are superfood enthusiasts on a mission. Together, they’ve co-founded two companies that offer a fresh take on plant-based eating, bringing nutritious, ethically sourced, whole food ingredients from soil to shelf.
After meeting as students at UC Santa Barbara, Garrison and Richardson started their first company, Imlak’esh Organics, in 2012. About ten years later, they started CHi Foods, which in 2024 started selling in 333 Whole Foods markets across the country. They credit their success to their grassroots approach to plant-based foods.
“Imlak’esh is about connecting small-scale native and Indigenous communities with an ethical global marketplace,” says Garrison, who seeks to contribute to sustainable food systems. “We connect with customers that want to eat real, nourishing food, and want to know that they are having a positive impact.”
Offering a curated line of modern pantry staples, Imlak’esh sources superfoods such as sacha inchi, macambo beans, cacao wafers and goji berries. The company also designs its own plastic-free packaging.
Tucker Garrison ’11 and Philip Matthew Richardson ’13
Photo: Courtesy
Drawing on and expanding the company’s values of sustainable agriculture, economic justice, cultural rights and healthy living, Garrison and Richardson co-founded CHi Foods in 2021. The first-ever line of USDA organic, plantbased ground “meat,” CHi Foods products are crafted from sacha inchi nuts, which are packed with complete protein and healthy Omega 3 oils.
“Working with local village leaders in Southeast Asia to source our sacha inchi nuts, CHi aims to create sustainable economic solutions,” says Richardson, who majored in environmental studies. “CHi brings integrity and clean ingredients back to the plant-based meat category.”
By formulating a line of plant-based meat products, Garrison and Richardson are getting the sacha inchi super-nut to the center of the plate. To realize their business dreams, Garrison was inspired in part by his studies at UCSB, where he created his own interdisciplinary major in neotribal studies.
“We’ve really built from the ground up a global supply chain of curated functional foods with a focus on organic and rainforest sourced superfoods,” he says, adding, “I’m here to be of service to something.”
Garrison and Richardson still call Santa Barbara home and can often be seen surfing in Isla Vista or hiking on a local trail. You can find their products nationwide in Sprouts and Whole Foods markets.
