After moving to the San Francisco Bay Area from Pittsburgh, Michelle Wolf, CTO and co-founder of New Wave Foods became intrigued by the idea of creating an plant-based seafood product that is as delicious as the real thing.
Wolf is scheduled to appear on a panel titled, The XX Factor: How Women are Reshaping the Future of Food taking place Monday, Jan. 14 at 11:30 a.m.
How did you and co-founder Dominique Barnes come up with the idea of a more sustainable seafood product?
I’ve always wanted to use my technical background to make an impact. Doing good for the environment and public health has always been the goal in my career. When I met Dominique in 2015, she introduced me to the devastating impact seafood consumption was having on our oceans and how plant-based foods could be a realistic alternative for people to turn to rather than continuing this destruction. We had explored some other options for seafood alternatives but eventually saw that plant-based shrimp would be the perfect target to set our sights on given the impact and market potential it had.
What makes algae a good alternative to meat?
Our plant-based shellfish products use a seaweed (macro-algae) extract to get the bite, crunch, and bounce you would find in traditional shrimp and shellfish. Functionally, it’s what makes our products delicious. Algae and seaweed are also one of the few foods that can have a positive environmental impact. Farming seaweed, in particular, has been shown to absorb more carbon dioxide than it produces. It can be grown at a rapid pace but doesn’t involve fertilizer, land erosion, or deforestation. Seaweed and algae are also nutrient rich ingredients and are an excellent source of fiber, minerals, and vitamins.
What are you most looking forward to at the Winter Fancy Food Show?
I love going to the Fancy Foods Show because it’s a great place to see what the standout flavors and cuisines in the coming year will be.
What trends are on your radar for 2019?
The plant-based market continues to see incredible growth as meatless and dairy-free products push forward into the mainstream. I’m excited to see the leading plant-based releases.
from Industry Operations http://bit.ly/2M1s8An
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