“We have very low capex, which allows us to to sell at parity, or even in some instances, to undercut traditional seafood,” says CEO Brittany Chibe.
The firm—which will use co-packers to manufacture its products with a view to launching in the fourth quarter of 2024—will have an initial focus on plant-based shrimp.
Shiok Meats, which had raised more than $30m since 2018, couldn’t see a clear path forward under its own steam.
The startup has entered into an assignment for the benefit of the creditors (ABC), an alternative to formal bankruptcy proceedings that transfers a distressed company’s assets from the debtor to a trust.
36 alt seafood startups in 14 countries—spanning cultivated, plant-based, and fermentation-based segments—have joined forces to create a new trade association: Future Ocean Foods.
Projections show a 14% growth in seafood demand by 2030 versus 2020 levels.
While the unit economics of cultivated chicken nuggets will likely be challenging for some time, making a high-value product such as Bluefin tuna in a bioreactor makes more sense, claims San Diego-based startup BlueNalu.
US retail sales of plant-based foods rose 6.6% to $8bn in 2022, with growth in creamers, eggs, and butter partially offset by declines in meat, ice cream, and cheese, according to new reports from the Plant Based Foods Association (PBFA) and the Good Food Institute (GFI). Unit sales fell 3%.
Aqua Cultured Foods has raised $5.5 million in a seed round led by Stray Dog Capital to expand its fermentation-based production platform for high-protein whole cuts of fungi-based seafood.
But the startup needs to get regulatory approval before it can sell its cell-cultured salmon to US consumers.
Cultivated meat and other “future foods” startups raised a total of $127 million in China during 2020.
Cultured Decadence has developed “proprietary cell lines and cell feed” for seafood products including lobster and other crustaceans.
The Chicago-based company will use the funds to commercialize its seafood analogs made with microbial fermentation.
