An Alt-Seafood ‘Unicorn’? Why Everyone’s Talking About Konjac

Glancing at the ingredient deck for any plant-based protein, you’re likely to find some familiar names: soy and pea protein, coconut and sunflower oil, methylcellulose, and a handful of others. Combined with natural flavors, these ingredients have been staples for making meat-free chicken, beef and pork products for decades.

But when it comes to replicating proteins from across the wide range of seafood species, makers have had limited success with that playbook which has, in effect, helped to curtail category innovation to simpler formats like fish sticks and patties. As new alt-seafood makers enter a market dominated by land-based protein sources, the category has been tasked with creating more complex yet comparable products, analogous to a wider range of undersea species.

There are numbers to support that call to action: Alternative seafood was the second fastest growing plant-based category in 2022, increasing its market share by upwards of 57%, according to a recent report from the Plant Based Food Association in partnership with Datassential. The U.S. market for alt-fish is predicted to continue on a rapid growth trajectory with market research firm IMARC Group estimating it will expand nearly 30%, reaching a $300 million-plus valuation by 2028.

So there’s another ingredient that might soon be universal: konjac, also known as elephant yam, which first found its way into that market in 2020, despite not offering any protein content itself. With the East Asian root vegetable’s growing use in the plant-based scene, a handful of emerging alt-seafood startups have been able to stake a claim within the market by introducing the ingredient into category-novel formats.

The Weight Loss Ingredient Making New Waves

For alt-seafood producers, konjac ticks a number of important boxes. Offering negligible carbohydrates, no sugar, zero calories and the ability to transform into a range of food formats, the flavorless, ancient root vegetable is now driving a new wave of alt-seafood innovation due to its unique textural abilities.

Until now, konjac is found most commonly in shirataki noodles and rice, a zero carb and zero-calorie alt-starch popular in Asian foods and marketed in the U.S. as a pasta-alternative for consumers looking to lose weight. The latter products are sold both in branded formats as well as in private label offerings. In 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) added konjac’s dietary fiber, glucomannan, to the federal definition for the nutrient category, though the ingredient had been used as a laxative and weight-loss supplement prior to that approval.

In Asia, the ingredient is the base of popular gelatin snacks that are mixed with fruit and other flavorings, though the safety of those products has faced global scrutiny resulting in bans on the importing of konjac jelly cups in numerous countries for being a choking hazard. According to a 2022 study, konjac may offer a slight, naturally fishy taste. For years, the ingredient has also been used in traditional seafood dishes including Surimi, a Japanese minced meat, and as a filler or replacement for lesser quality fish species.

Brands in the alt-seafood category prize the ingredient for its stable-yet-gelatinous texture, zero calorie and carb count, and its ability to take on any flavor. That might sound similar to tofu, except konjac offers a “bounce” that, according to a team of scientists at food research and development firm Mattson, is not replicable with any other standard plant-based ingredients. Konjac is most commonly sold in a bulk flour form, and can then be rehydrated and formed into food products.

“That [use] was also only fairly recent, like within the last 50 years,” explained Jennifer Goza, a food scientist at Mattson. “Because it works so well as a texture for seafood products, and to make imitation seafood [products] alongside actual seafood protein – that is why it has found its way into the plant-based space.”

Unlocking New Textures And Alt-Seafood Formats

At this year’s Winter Fancy Food Show, after nearly two years of R&D, Konscious Foods debuted its line of frozen sushi rolls, onigiri and poke bowl kits. The 12-SKU line, which emphasizes clean label standards, features konjac in 11 of its 12 products. The brand is currently piloting a launch at select Canadian Whole Foods Market and Choice Market stores with wider distribution expected to follow this year.

Konscious recently secured funding from the Protein Industries of Canada (PIC), an industry-led co-investment platform that supports the use of Canadian-grown ingredients in plant-based innovations. PIC committed $5.5 million to a cohort that included Konscious and two other alt-seafood projects last year and has invested over $485 million into Canadian plant-based protein companies to-date.

Another company, Boldly Foods, unveiled its product lineup earlier this month with calamari, salmon, tuna sashimi, shrimp, crab stick, and white fish filet analogs – all formulated with konjac. Allen Zelden, Boldly’s founder and CEO, highlighted the ingredient’s versatility, neutral flavor and high fiber, vitamin and mineral contents as the driving factors behind its inclusion. Boldly aims to soft launch exclusively into the foodservice channel this spring.

Zelden, who co-founded private label plant-based product manufacturer PlantForm in 2022, said konjac was the key to unlocking a plant-based seafood protein that replicated the look, mouthfeel and taste of fish-based products. He claims growing and sourcing konjac is also more cost effective than most other popular plant-based protein ingredients. The crop is still primarily grown and sourced from Southeast Asia, where PlantForm’s manufacturing facility is located, making the ingredient’s supply chain fairly short and simple for Boldly.

The ISH Food Company also launched a konjac-based alt-shrimp in July and raised $5 million to accelerate innovation and foodservice distribution earlier this year.

Though konjac may be having a center stage moment in the alt-seafood category, this is not the first time it has been used for this purpose: The Plant-Based Seafood Co. debuted a konjac-based shrimp line back in August 2020. The company has garnered investment support from both chef Tom Colicchio and Spike Mendelsohn, the latter is also a co-founder of plant-based snack brand Eat The Change.

The product was largely sold to foodservice and vegan-focused restaurants on the West Coast after its initial launch and was so realistic it once fooled Lonica Kufner, lifelong plant-based food consumer and founder of Clean Label Consulting, into believing she was eating the real thing. Kufner has advised multiple plant-based seafood makers on product formulations including OmniFoods’ seafood line, which launched in late 2020 but does not use konjac; online vegan platform GTFO It’s Vegan, which makes a konjac-based private label line of alt-seafoods; and Boldly co-manufacturing arm, PlantForm, among others.

Challenges to Crafting Chew-able Creations

According to a team of food scientists at Mattson, the ingredient’s ability to maintain its solid, gelatin structure even when cooked or heated is unique. Brenda Fong, Mattson’s principal scientist, noted that in order to achieve this the konjac needs to be prepared with just the right alkalinity and avoid interactions with salts and sugars.

That has allowed its textural and structural integrity to be tested in numerous plant-based analogs outside of the ocean, where it has seen varying degrees of success.

In one unsuccessful test, for example, a food scientist used konjac as an alternative binder to methylcellulose in a plant-based burger so that the product would be considered organic; clear chunks of konjac were visible in the final product. In another experiment, that same food scientist, Maddison Gurrola, applied konjac to hard vegan cheeses. She said it was fairly successful, but had resulted in more of an American-style cheddar cheese with “too much bounce” for the client, who had wanted a traditional style cheddar.

Even for alt-seafood, the ingredient’s greatest differentiator also causes limitations.

According to the scientists and Zelden, achieving the proper konjac texture is difficult; Gurrola noted it once transformed what was intended to be a faux salmon filet into an analog with the textural springiness of calamari. Other hurdles to overcome include a waxy mouth coating, potentially unappealing visual aesthetics within a product, “rubbery” texture and unintentionally absorbing colors.

Others have not had as easy of a time as Zelden in sourcing the ingredient. According to both Kufner and the Mattson team, there is a lot of variability between konjac products, and a limited number of suppliers. Additionally, if the ingredient is sourced from China, Kufner said those products have a difficult time making it through the organic certification process.

She also said she has found a downside that counters its many benefit claims, including konjac’s FODMAP status: konjac has a record of causing a range of gastric problems, including bloating and indigestion. As Mattson food scientists explained, konjac offers a lot of textural benefits, but it often can’t be used on its own and requires a delicate balance of numerous other ingredients to reach its full potential.

“It’s pretty cool that you can replicate seafood quite well using something that’s natural,” noted Kufner. “However, that’s not all it takes and the ingredient lists of some of these seafood companies are lackluster. I have had the opportunity to work with a lot of great companies and I’ve watched them try to clean up ingredient lists [but] it’s not always possible.”

Beyond that, the larger issue around the speed of adoption of alt-fish is that, for seafood eaters, besides the potential presence of mercury in some species types, the base products don’t have the reputation of being unhealthy, according to Kufner.

“I think it’s going to be here for a while as an ingredient, and I don’t think it’s necessarily that bad, I just feel like the jury is still out,” Kufner explained. “It also does have a wonderful benefit for people who are literally trying to diet. [But] I don’t think it should be purported as a health-food because it doesn’t make sense based on the research so far.”

However, if the category is able to win over the trifecta of consumers – those attuned to climate, animal welfare and health issues – both Kufner and Zelden believe the industry will thrive. Zelden said that with the rising interest in plant-based eating, and growing consumer awareness to the environmental and ethical impact of seafood consumption, konjac unlocks new possibilities in the category – and may ripple into a new wave of alt-seafood adopters.

“As plant-based seafoods are still uncharted territory for millions of people, and with consumers increasingly seeking alternatives to conventional meat and dairy, I believe the time is right for the next evolution of plant-based seafood products,” Zelden said. “And konjac is the perfect natural ingredient to deliver on all the above key factors – as well as appearance and availability – if we are to efficiently and economically reshape consumer perceptions around these foods.”