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Israeli alternative seafood start-up, Plantish, has raised $12.5 million in a seed funding round to boost the production of its plant-based, whole-cut salmon fillets. The round was led by State Of Mind Ventures, with participation from Pitango Health Tech, Unovis and TechAviv Founder Partners, among others. The company says this investment represents the largest seed round in the alternative seafood market. Founded in 2021, Plantish has developed a manufacturing technology aimed at producing plant-based, whole-cut fish alternatives that replicate the taste, texture and nutrition of conventional salmon. The funds will enable the company to carry out further R&D to accelerate product development, with hopes to enter the foodservice sector. Plantish's CEO and co-founder, Ofek Ron, said: “We’ve already seen it happen in the meat market, now it’s the time for fish. And in particular, salmon, which accounts for $50 billion in the half a trillion dollar seafood market. The problem has been that fish is so difficult to replicate until now.” He continued: “We understand that over 60% of seafood is eaten outside the home, and salmon is among the most popular fish and animal protein in the world. Therefore we are focusing our efforts on the foodservice route and you can expect to see us in fine dining restaurants within the next two years.” Plantish salmon will be available in pop-up locations later in the year, officially launching in restaurants nationwide in 2024.