Plant-based, mycoprotein & seaweed-derived seafood

01Overview and value chain

Markers: [EC: FDA GRAS / EU Novel Food Regulation (EU) 2015/2283 / plant-based labelling rulings | OECD: Marine Bioeconomy | Regulator: FDA (USA), EFSA (EU), NMPA (China)]

Plant-based and next-gen seafood substitutes reconstruct the texture, nutrition and sensory profile of fish and shellfish from plant-protein isolates (pea, soy, fava bean), fermented mycoprotein and seaweed — entirely bypassing aquaculture and wild capture. Leading seaweed-blend products reach 8–10 grams of protein and over 6 grams of fibre per 100 grams while remaining soy- and wheat-free, mycoprotein fillets reach over 500 retail locations in a single chain, and a 2024 Vienna court ruling dismissed a labelling lawsuit against a plant-based fish brand, affirming naming rights. The 2026 market consolidates around cross-Atlantic deals — Bayou Best Foods acquiring Berlin’s BettaF!sh (Wunderfish) to unite US plant-based shrimp with European tuna and salmon lines — and around scale-up rounds such as Oshi’s 3 million dollar raise, with substitute seafood already sold across eight European countries and used by Pizza Hut, L’Osteria, Aramark, Deutsche Bahn and Japan Airlines. This article is scoped to the plant-based, mycoprotein and seaweed-derived route; cell-cultured seafood is covered in cultured-seafood, marine peptides and collagen in marine-peptides-nutraceuticals, and microalgal protein in microalgae-aquaculture.

The key directions of plant-based and next-gen seafood are:

1. Whole-cut plant-based fillets (Whole-Cut Fillets): Oshi’s modular layering of plant proteins and fats recreates the flaky structure of salmon and whitefish fillets, moving the category beyond minced and reformed formats toward genuine whole cuts.
2. Mycoprotein 3D-structured seafood (3D-Structured Mycoprotein): Revo Foods’ proprietary 3D Structuring precisely combines fermented-mycelium mycoprotein, fats and micronutrients into fibrous, layer-rich filets at industrial scale, at the TASTE FACTORY in Vienna.
3. Seaweed-blend canned substitutes (Seaweed-Blend Canned Seafood): BettaF!sh TU-NAH and SAL-NOM combine seaweed with pea and fava bean proteins to mimic canned tuna and smoked salmon, drawing omega-3 from the seaweed fraction.
4. Pea-protein retort seafood (Pea-Protein Retort Products): Sophie’s Kitchen Vegan Toona uses pea-protein texturing to replicate the flake and shred of canned tuna, distributed through US retail alongside calamari, shrimp and scallop lines.

Sectoral value chain

[Plant isolates / mycoprotein / seaweed] ──> [Formulation & hydration] ──> [Extrusion / 3D structuring] ──> [Cooking / retort / chilling]
                                                          │
                                              (texture & fibre alignment)
                                                          ▼
[Packaged seafood substitutes] <─── [Quality & sensory QC] <─────────────┘

Value chain levels

Cross-cutting technologies of the sector:

• Modular layering and 3D Structuring (3D Food Structuring): precision deposition of alternating protein and fat layers recreates whole-cut flakiness and anisotropic fibre that simple extrusion cannot achieve.
• Seaweed lipid integration (Seaweed Lipid Blending): seaweed supplies both the ocean flavour profile and the omega-3 (EPA/DHA) fraction, replacing fish oil entirely.
• Plant-protein texturing (Plant-Protein Texturing): high-moisture extrusion and shear align pea, soy and fava proteins into meat-like fibres under controlled thermal and mechanical input.

02US

The United States concentrates plant-based seafood R&D and scale-up capital: an Israel-founded whole-cut platform (Oshi) expanding into US production alongside an established pea-protein retort brand (Sophie’s Kitchen), while Bayou Best Foods’ acquisition of BettaF!sh pulls European tuna and salmon lines into US foodservice.

Oshi whole-cut platform, Sophie’s Kitchen pea-protein Toona, FDA GRAS

• Oshi (Israel-founded, US-expanding): formerly Plantish and based in Rehovot, the firm raised 3 million dollars in February 2026 from a Latin American seafood manufacturer — with Unovis Asset Management, Alumni Ventures and investors linked to Oatly, Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat — to scale its modular-layering whole-cut salmon and whitefish fillet platform, adding an ocean-scent sensory profile.
• Sophie’s Kitchen: a US plant-based seafood brand whose Vegan Toona (Sea Salt: pea protein, gluten- and soy-free, about 100 kcal; Black Pepper: soy and pea protein, about 90 kcal) replicates canned-tuna flake and shred, alongside calamari, shrimp, scallop and fillet lines.
• FDA GRAS and plant-based labelling: plant-based seafood clears US entry largely through FDA GRAS self-affirmation for ingredients with an established food-use history, while plant-based seafood naming follows the FDA’s broader plant-based-labelling guidance.

03CN

China’s plant-based seafood market is active, but no dedicated domestic commercial originator cleared live-source confirmation in this pass; the category reaches Greater China mainly via Hong Kong brands and Asian aquatic-product expos.

Green Monday OmniSeafood, Shanghai and Dalian aquatic expos, import pathway

• Green Monday / OmniSeafood: Hong Kong-based Green Monday’s OmniSeafood line is the most visible Greater-China plant-based-seafood brand, although 2026 company-specific product news did not clear source confirmation.
• Aquatic-product expos: World Seafood Shanghai (August 2025) and the 2026 Asia-Pacific Aquatic Food Exhibition in Dalian (May 2026) confirm an active Greater-China demand pool for alternative seafood.
• Import and licensing pathway: as in other novel-protein categories, US- and EU-originated plant-based seafood is expected to reach China initially through import and licensing rather than domestic origination.

04EU

The European Union anchors plant-based seafood in Germany and Austria — BettaF!sh’s seaweed-blend canned line and Revo Foods’ 3D-printed mycoprotein fillets — under EU Novel Food rules and a 2024 Vienna court ruling that protected plant-based fish labelling.

BettaF!sh seaweed TU-NAH, Revo Foods TASTE FACTORY, EU Novel Food and labelling

• BettaF!sh (Berlin, Wunderfish GmbH): its TU-NAH canned-tuna and SAL-NOM smoked-salmon alternatives (seaweed plus fava and pea protein, rapeseed oil) deliver 8–10 grams of protein and over 6 grams of fibre per 100 grams in soy- and wheat-free formats, and are sold across eight European countries with foodservice use by Pizza Hut, L’Osteria, Aramark, Deutsche Bahn and Japan Airlines; BettaF!sh was acquired by US-based Bayou Best Foods to form a cross-Atlantic plant-based-seafood group.
• Revo Foods TASTE FACTORY: the Vienna food-tech firm opened the TASTE FACTORY — claimed as the world’s largest industrial 3D food-printing facility — whose first product THE FILET (mycoprotein, inspired by salmon) reached over 500 REWE Austria locations, with a 3D-extruded black-cod substitute following.
• EU Novel Food and plant-based labelling: pea and mycoprotein ingredients with an established food-use history can avoid full EU Novel Food (EC) 2015/2283 authorisation, and a 2024 Vienna court dismissed a labelling lawsuit against Revo Foods’ plant-based fish, affirming plant-based seafood naming rights in the EU.

05Leading companies and research institutes

06Tech stack and innovations

Plant-based seafood production rests on precision structuring (extrusion or 3D deposition), seaweed-driven flavour and lipid design, and plant-protein texturing that together recreate the anisotropic fibre of fish muscle.

1. 3D Structuring and multi-material deposition (3D Food Structuring):
   • Revo Foods combines mycoprotein, fats and micronutrients in precise layer configurations under mild low-temperature, low-pressure conditions to recreate fibrous whole cuts while preserving heat-sensitive micronutrients that high-temperature extrusion would destroy.
   • The TASTE FACTORY in Vienna scales this from a pilot craft to industrial throughput, reaching over 500 REWE Austria locations with THE FILET.
2. Modular protein-and-fat layering (Modular Layering):
   • Oshi assembles alternating plant-protein and lipid layers with specialised equipment to recreate seafood flakiness and an ocean-scent sensory profile.
   • The platform is engineered as a plug-and-play retrofit for existing food-production facilities, lowering the capital barrier to whole-cut production.
3. Seaweed-protein blending (Seaweed-Protein Blending):
   • BettaF!sh integrates seaweed with fava and pea proteins to supply both the ocean flavour profile and the omega-3 fraction without fish oil.
   • The blend delivers 8–10 grams of protein and over 6 grams of fibre per 100 grams in soy- and wheat-free formats suited to canned-tuna and smoked-salmon substitutes.

07Value chains and production pipelines

Industrial pipeline of a plant-based salmon fillet by modular layering and 3D structuring (FDA GRAS / EU Novel Food)

┌───────────────────────────┐      ┌───────────────────────────┐
│ 1. Raw-material dosing    │ ───> │ 2. Hydration and          │
│    and standardisation    │      │    formulation            │
└───────────────────────────┘      └───────────────────────────┘
                                                  │
                                                  ▼
┌───────────────────────────┐      ┌───────────────────────────┐
│ 4. Setting and texture    │ <─── │ 3. Layer structuring      │
│    fixation               │      │    (extrusion / 3D)       │
└───────────────────────────┘      └───────────────────────────┘
              │
              ▼
┌───────────────────────────┐      ┌───────────────────────────┐
│ 5. Cooling, slicing and   │ ───> │ 6. Packaging and          │
│    portioning             │      │    quality control        │
└───────────────────────────┘      └───────────────────────────┘

Stage 1: Raw-material dosing and standardisation

Pea and fava protein isolates, fermented-mycelium mycoprotein biomass, seaweed powder and rapeseed oil are received in food-grade form and dosed by mass into a preconditioning hopper, with each batch checked for protein content (target above 70 percent for isolates) and microbiological load before release to formulation.

Stage 2: Hydration and formulation

The dry blend is hydrated with water and flavour to roughly 40–55 percent moisture in a jacketed mixer, combining proteins, lipids, seaweed and binders to a target rheology; the mix is degassed and held at chilled temperature to preserve the ocean-flavour volatiles before structuring.

Stage 3: Layer structuring

The hydrated mass is deposited or extruded in alternating protein-and-fat layers — by modular layering (Oshi-style) or 3D Structuring (Revo Foods-style) — to build the anisotropic, flaky architecture of a salmon or whitefish fillet, aligning fibres under controlled shear without high-temperature denaturation.

Stage 4: Setting and texture fixation

The structured fillet is thermally set under gentle heat and low pressure to fix fibre alignment and mouthfeel, deliberately avoiding the aggressive thermal input that would degrade heat-sensitive micronutrients and the ocean-scent profile.

Stage 5: Cooling, slicing and portioning

The set fillet log is chilled, scanned for structural integrity, and sliced to target portion weights and fillet geometry; off-cuts are recovered and reworked to minimise waste in a closed-loop line.

Stage 6: Packaging and quality control

Portions are packed in vacuum trays, pouches or retort cans (for canned formats), with QC for flake integrity, moisture, protein and fibre content, allergen absence (soy- and wheat-free claims) and microbiological purity before palletising for retail and foodservice distribution across the eight-country European footprint and US channels.