Vegan Salmon Sashimi Launches in the Netherlands

Plant-based brand Vegan SeaStar will launch its first vegan seafood products at Jumbo Food Market in Groningen, Netherlands. The brand is a collaboration between consulting firm Vegan XL and popular Netherlands-based restaurant chain Vegan Junk Food Bar. SeaStar created its vegan sashimi—“No Tuna” and “Zalmon”—with a combination of tapioca starch and glucose extracted from seaweed to mimic the texture and flavor of fish. The brand aims to disrupt the global seafood industry that has caused 50 species of fish to go extinct and depleted more than 85 percent of the world’s fish stocks. Stateside, vegan brand Ocean Hugger Foods launched its tomato-based “Ahimi” tuna in the sushi case at Whole Foods Market nationwide to address the same issues, with carrot-based salmon substitute “Sakimi” and eggplant-based eel-replacer “Unami” in development.