Wicked Kitchen acquires Current Foods; Loki Foods wins Best Newcomer Award

SeafoodSource is closely following the plant-based and cell-based seafood alternatives market by compiling a regular round-up of updates from the sector.

- Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.A.-based plant-based food company Wicked Kitchen announced on 23 May it has acquired San Francisco, California, U.S.A. Current Foods, a maker of plant-based tuna and salmon analogs.

"Current Foods is a perfect match for Wicked as a global-impact brand with the same mission and complementary products," Wicked Kitchen CEO Pete Speranza said in a release. "We're able to put the Current Foods brand in the best possible spot to thrive and as a versatile multi-category brand, Wicked Kitchen is the home to do that." 

- On 22 May, Sydney, Australia-based seafood analog company announced the launch of its 100 percent plant-based seafood line. It debuted the products at the National Restaurant Association Show, exhibiting its salmon, tuna, crabsticks, calamari sticks, calamari rings, jumbo prawns, shrimp bites, and whitefish analogs. 

“Seafood is the world’s largest traded food commodity with approximately three billion people relying on it as a core source of protein,” Boldly CEO Ananda Bhavani said in a release. “With 65 percent of seafood expenditure occurring outside the home, primarily at restaurants, we at Boldly are excited to offer a variety of new plant-based choices with no compromise, bringing all the classic seafood tastes to restaurant tables, better than ever.”

- Plant-based seafood start-up headquartered in Reykjavik, Iceland Loki Foods was recognized by the Nordic Start-up Awards for Best Newcomer. The company is less than a year old, and in August 2022 received funding to develop its cod fillet analog.  

“Winning this award is not only a validation of our mission, but it also reinforces our position as a transformative force in the food industry. At Loki Foods, we are driven by the belief that sustainability and deliciousness can go hand in hand. Our plant-based meat and seafood options offer a viable solution to the pressing challenges our food system faces today,” Loki Foods CEO and Co-Founder Christopher McClure wrote on his LinkedIn.

Photo courtesy of Christopher McClure/Shutterstock