New School Foods, a Canadian start-up specialising in plant-based seafood alternatives, has secured an additional $6 million in funding from global investors, including Inter Ikea Group, Good Startup, NewTree Capital and Hatch.

This latest investment brings the company's total seed funding to $18 million, positioning it for an upcoming launch of its whole-cut salmon filet in US and Canadian restaurants.

IKEA, which generates approximately $2.5 billion in food sales from its physical stores, is increasingly focusing on plant-based offerings.

The company aims for 50% of its main meals to be plant-based and 80% to be non-red meat by 2025. This investment aligns with Ikea's broader commitment to sustainability and innovation in food production.

Robert Carleke, innovation ventures manager at Inter Ikea Group, added: “New School Foods is a true pioneer in the alternative protein industry. We were impressed by their team and the production technology they’ve developed.”

New School Foods recently unveiled its 28,000 square-foot pilot production facility in Toronto, which will house the company’s V1 Commercial Assembly Line.

This facility is designed to produce its plant-based salmon filet using patented Scaffolding & Directional Freezing technologies. These methods replicate the muscle fibres and connective tissues found in traditional seafood, addressing common industry challenges such as texture and taste parity.

Chris Bryson, CEO of New School Foods, stated, “Our pilot facility and deployment of our V1 production line mark a critical milestone, enabling us to produce groundbreaking products and bring them to market.”

The company’s innovative cold-based processing technique allows for a raw-to-cooked product that mimics the cooking process of wild fish, setting it apart from other plant-based alternatives that often rely on pre-cooking.

The plant-based meat alternative sector faces significant challenges, including limited processing techniques and the difficulty of achieving texture and taste parity with traditional meat products. New School Foods aims to address these issues through its unique production methods, which are scalable and designed for global operations.

As the demand for sustainable food options continues to grow, investments like Ikea's in New School Foods reflect a broader trend among food manufacturers to explore innovative solutions in the plant-based market.

The launch of New School's plant-based salmon filet later this year will be closely watched by industry stakeholders as a potential game-changer in the alternative protein space.

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