From plant-based salmon and lab-grown cultured tuna, to real sugar that is 50% sweeter, the innovation happening in the Israeli food-tech system is astounding and changing the very definition of food.
The story of DouxMatok follows the life of Prof. Avraham Baniel (recently celebrated 102).
Beginning with just an idea in 1944 during WWII when sugar and other ingredients were rationed, to Chicago in 2001 when a sugar substitute company realized that people do not prefer a sweet alternative but rather, the real deal, to 2013 when Prof. Baniel creates in his home kitchen, a “sweeter” sugar, to finally in 2013 when the Professor at the age of 96 with 75 years of experience in industrial chemical research along with his son, Eran, founded DouxMatok and answered this question: Can the sweetness of sugar – real sugar – be enhanced to allow for the reduction, and still satisfy consumers? The answer is yes, and now the way the world sweetens food will change as we know it.
It doesn’t stop with sugar, though. With fish reserves depleted in the oceans, Sea2Cell and Plantfish are just some incredible Israeli startups developing cultured and plant-based fish.
Investment has grown tenfold over the past couple of years as the global fisheries market sees a major shortage in fish and incredible damage to the environment by the fish industry. Sea2Cell is developing cultured blue tuna, and already raised NIS 3.5 million.
Prof. Sivan, a professor of biology at the Hebrew University Faculty of Agriculture set up a company for accelerating the fish farming process but believes wild fish should be left alone.
She has reached incredible breakthroughs by isolating cells from living tissues of fish to raise them. While stem cells of mammals have been produced for some time in research institutions, there are very few fish stem cells produced. The company is building a massive stem cell production with the aim of blue tuna. “Prof. Sivan said, “Even if we prevent the killing of one tuna, we would have achieved something.”
Plantish is developing plant-based salmon and plans to launch its products in Michelin listed restaurants in the US and release its prototype in 2023. It aims to use plants to mimic the taste and texture of fish. It has already raided NIS 2 million. This is just the beginning of how tech in Israel is having a massive impact on the global basics of life. Can this save our oceans? Can DouxMatok help people with diabetes? Time will tell.
