Current Foods Makes Its Sushi-Grade Sustainable Vegan Tuna And Salmon Available for US-Wide Delivery

Newly rebranded Current Foods has announced the launch of a direct-to-customer sales initiative. The company, which was formerly known as Kuleana, making its vegan tuna and smoked salmon analogues available for delivery throughout the U.S. Interested consumers can sign up for pre-launch access to a new online shop, which will feature Kuleana Tuna and smoked salmon. 

Current Foods launched in 2019 in San Francisco, founded on a mission to develop realistic seafood alternatives that would stand up to a variety of professional applications, including sushi preparation. The full range is designed to be an alternative to conventional seafood, with zero environmental consequences or ethical quandaries.

Dynamic compositions

Current Foods utilises a combination of unexpected ingredients to recreate fish-like textures and flavour profiles. Its flagship product, the Kuleana Tuna, is a blend of radish, bamboo, algae, and potato, which offer a similar nutritional breakdown to that of real tuna, being rich in iron, omega-3 and vitamin B12.

“This is seafood made from plants that you can eat every day and in every chapter of life—no mercury, no microplastics, no pregnancy restrictions, no planetary strain, and no compromises on taste, texture, or nutritional density,” Adrienne Han, Current Foods vice president of consumer marketing, told VegNews.

Ready to use plant-based seafood

The tuna substitute will be available to buy in two incarnations, reflecting the intended use for the product. Poké cubes and standard fillets can be kept in the fridge for seven days or frozen for up to one year. 

Similar to the tuna, a new smoked salmon release has been developed using, again, algae, potato, and bamboo, amongst other ingredients. Both vegan fish varieties are designed to be used in any recipes that call for sushi-grade fish. Ceviche, carpaccio, and sashimi are all notably included.

Making the products available for consumers to buy directly comes after successful food service partnerships. Though the tuna has been available to buy from the Los Angeles-based Erewhon health food store, this will be the inaugural direct online retail offering from Current Foods. “Our restaurant and grocery partners continue to come up with delicious and inventive ways to prepare our plant-based seafood,” Han continued to VegNews. “In 2022, we’re making Current Foods even more accessible via [direct to consumer] and retail, so the catch of tomorrow can be enjoyed in the current … whenever and however, from the comfort of home.”

Catching the perfect vegan tuna

Vegan seafood alternatives are fast shaping up to be a major trend in 2022. In particular, vegan tuna appears to be the seafood version of bacon in that multiple companies are chasing the perfect formulation to nail the holy grail food.

One of the more unusual products being developed comes from newly revived Spanish startup Mimic Foods. Choosing to use tomatoes, in place of soy, wheat, or legume protein, the company is ramping up to bring Tunato to multiple markets as soon as possible. It is developing new lines alongside. 

Over in Chile, NotCo has set its sights on replicating its recent successes with red meat and chicken alternatives, in the seafood sector. It is aiming to develop a totally new plant-based tuna analogue, using its proprietary AI system, Giuseppe.

Lead photo by Current Foods.