The Age Of Eating Plant-Based 3D-Printed Salmon Is Upon Us
It's only been a few years since plant-based brands Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods made their international supermarket debut, impressing vegans and other plant-based shoppers with their products' uncanny likeness to meat. Now, vegans and flexitarians have an unexpected reason to visit Austria, where the world's first 3D-printed, plant-based salmon is available in grocery stores.
The technologically advanced fish dupe is the brainchild of Revo Foods, a startup that peddles plant-based seafood in an effort to reduce overfishing and "[relieve] pressure on the marine ecosystem," per its website. Its products include vegan smoked salmon, gravlax, and fish spreads, but its newest 3D-printed offering, "THE FILLET — Inspired By Salmon," is the first of its kind.
"With the milestone of industrial-scale 3D food printing, we are entering a creative food revolution," Revo CEO Robin Simsa said in a statement. Here's everything you need to know about the salmon that isn't actually salmon.
All the health benefits of salmon, without the salmon
Those concerned about losing the nutritional benefits of salmon with its plant-based replacement will be glad to know that Revo Foods' 3D-printed creation contains a laundry list of vitamins, protein, and omega-3 fatty acids. The fillet is made with fungi-based soy microprotein, which is meant to mimic the texture of actual fish.
The fillet, which costs €6,99 a pop and is already sold out online, can be cooked like real salmon in an oven, a pan, or an air fryer. According to the company, the fillet is significantly more sustainable than real salmon, generating 77-86% less CO² and using 95% less water.
Revo Foods isn't the first brand to introduce such innovations. 3D-printed meat cuts from the Israeli startup Redefine Meat are sweeping European butcher shops and restaurants. And just when we thought we'd seen it all, a food lab at Columbia University turned out 3D-printed cheesecake. The future has arrived, and it's made of edible filaments.