Israeli start-up SimpliiGood creates plant-based smoked salmon from spirulina algae

Foodtech company SimpliiGood has successfully developed a vegan smoked salmon prototype from spirulina algae.

The Israeli start-up claims it has been able to create a product with the same texture, flavour and appearance as traditional smoked salmon, which is a much more sustainable alternative.

SimpliiGood uses algae to develop small vegan salmon chunks, as well as leftover pigmentation from the algae to give the product an orange hue similar to fish-based smoked salmon.

In order to get its smoked salmon onto the market, SimpliiGood intends to seek partnership with the global corporation, International Flavours & Fragrances Inc (IFF).

Lior Shalev, CEO of the SimpliiGood said in a report from Israeli news group Mako: “SimpliiGood is proud to lead this field in the Israeli ecosystem, to grow and collaborate with the world’s leading food companies in order to bring to the world a healthy, tasty and high-quality product without compromise, which does not harm animals and the environment. We welcome the collaboration with the international giant IFF, which is expanding our development line and introducing us to the huge market for fish substitutes and later on to others,”

A recent report released by the Good Food Institute revealed that Israeli foodtech start-ups in the alternative proteins sector saw a 450% increase in investments between 2020 and 2022. The report also showed that more than 36% of investments into cultivated meat worldwide in this period were given solely to Israeli start-ups.

Some companies driving change in the Israeli alternative protein sector include Future Meat, which secured the biggest investment in Israeli foodtech history in 2021. Another giant in the field is Redefine Meat, which already launched its products in a range of Israeli restaurants and hotels last year, and was also scouted by celebrity chef Marco Pierre White, who put the brand’s 3D-printed steaks on some of his restaurants’ menus.

Algae is proving to be a popular ingredient in alternative seafood innovation. In 2021, a group of researchers from the University of Lisbon launched a new project to develop a whole cut boneless cell-based seabass, using algae to create the edible scaffolds within the lab-grown fillet.