Alt Seafood: Good Catch Debuts New Breaded Plant-Based Fish & Crab Cakes Products

Plant-based seafood brand Good Catch Foods is widening its net of products, launching a new line-up of breaded fish alternatives. Made from its proprietary six-legume blend of plant proteins, the new vegan products include breaded fish sticks, fish fillets and crab cakes, and will be available across U.S. retailers in June. 

Good Catch Foods has expanded its line of seafood alternatives with a new breaded range. The new line includes three frozen products – Plant-Based Breaded Fish Sticks, Plant-Based Breaded Fish Fillets and Plant-Based Breaded Crab Cakes – all retailing for US$5.99 and available to consumers from June onwards at their stockists, including Giant Food, Martin’s, Safeway and Albertsons.

More retailers will be launching the breaded products in the coming months, with a further foodservice roll-out planned for around “late summer and fall” of this year. Some of Good Catch’s existing foodservice partners include fast-casual vegan chain Veggie Grill, Whole Foods Mart and Bareburger. 

The new products are described as a recreation of classic nostalgic comfort foods, and like the rest of Good Catch’s range, are made from its six-legume blend of peas, chickpeas, lentils, soy, fava beans and navy beans. 

Consumers have become more aware of the environmental impact of eating seafood and we’re proud to be a delicious, culinary-driven solution.

Chad Sarno, Co-Founder & Chief Culinary Officer, Gathered Foods

In terms of nutrition, all three products boast at least 12 grams of protein per serving, while still delivering the “same taste and texture” as traditional seafood – but without the plethora of negative environmental impacts associated with fishing, from its carbon emissions and plastic pollution to destroying sea life and human rights abuses.

Read: Bottom trawling fishing releases more emissions than global aviation, study finds

“These products are game-changers for the industry,” said Chad Sarno, co-founder and chief culinary officer at Gathered Foods, the parent company of Good Catch. 

“Consumers have become more aware of the environmental impact of eating seafood and we’re proud to be a delicious, culinary-driven solution. We’re pushing culinary boundaries every day to deliver the taste and texture consumers expect from seafood. This product line has surpassed our expectations and we are incredibly proud.” 

Since its inception in 2016, Good Catch’s range has expanded from its famous fish-free tuna pouches to a number of seafood analogues, including plant-based crab cakes, Thai-style fish cakes and classic vegan fish burgers, and has won multiple celebrity endorsements from big names like Woody Harrelson, Shailene Woodley and Paris Hilton. 

This nascent industry, which is ready to surge, presents an immense opportunity for our brand.

Christine Mei, CEO, Gathered Foods

The brand says that amid the coronavirus, demand for their products has only grown, in line with the broader plant-based industry which saw retail sales within the U.S. balloon to a record US$7 billion in 2020. 

Christine Mei, CEO of Gathered Foods, believes that the vegan seafood category is going to be especially disruptive in the coming years, especially as trends show consumers increasingly displacing red meat with fish, making the need for alternative seafood products evermore critical. Already, established food giants are hopping in, with players like Nestlé and shrimp behemoth Thai Union both entering the plant-based seafood space. 

“This nascent industry, which is ready to surge, presents an immense opportunity for our brand,” commented Mei. “As we continue to grow, our focus remains on creating craveable plant-based seafood alternatives that deliver on taste, texture and comparable protein.” 

Investors are clearly aware of the opportunity to be made too, with Gathered Foods having just secured US$26.35 million in its Series B-2 bridge funding round in April. At the time, the company said that the capital will fuel its entry into new European markets, after having opened its massive 42,500 square foot plant-based production facility in Ohio funded by its earlier Series B.

“We’re incredibly bullish about the future of Good Catch,” said Chris Kerr, executive chair of Gathered Foods, on the brand’s latest range expansion. “Our products fill a void in the marketplace. We’ll continue to lead in this category and have a few more launches this year that will excite both investors and consumers.” 

All images courtesy of Good Catch.