By Lilian Schaer
With global seafood demand climbing and traditional supply chains increasingly under strain, an innovative Canadian start-up is casting its line into the future of food.
Profillet Foods, a Nova Scotia-based company born out of its founders competing in the global XPrize: Feed the Next Billion Challenge, is developing a plant-based whitefish filet that mirrors the taste, texture, and nutritional value of conventional seafood — but without the environmental impacts, supply challenges or residue concerns of natural seafood products.
“We’re solving a sustainability problem,” says Greg Potter, a fermentation and bioprocess scientist and one of Profillet’s co-founders. “Conventional seafood production raises concerns around heavy metal residues, microplastics, spoilage, and increasing pressure on aquatic ecosystems. We’re working on a cleaner, scalable protein source for a growing global population.”
Potter’s co-founders include Laura Hackl, a protein quality and micro-nutrient specialist; serial entrepreneur Steve George who has founded other sustainability and upcycling-type start-ups; and Ricardo Martinez, also a sustainability and upcycling specialist.
Profillet’s whitefish filet is made from a blend of plant proteins including soy, chickpea, and potato and ingredients derived from fermentation such as algae oils and pigments. It’s currently undergoing testing with potential customers to determine market demand.
Early product lines include whole-cut filets, breaded options, and fish finger-style products — all of which the company hopes will appeal to health-conscious eaters and sustainability-minded buyers.
Innovation with impact
Recently, Profillet’s journey has been accelerated by the GreenShoots program, a joint initiative by Invest Nova Scotia, the Greenspring Bioinnovation Hub, and Bioenterprise Canada to support early-stage technology companies in Nova Scotia bridge critical development gaps with both funding and business and mentorship support. “GreenShoots was incredibly valuable,” says Potter. “It allowed us to complete a full techno-economic and life cycle analysis of our product, trial quality testing with a seafood lab, and conduct a shelf-life study — all of which gave us the data and credibility to move forward.”
The funding also helped Profillet engage with a scale-up specialist and enroll in the ProVeg International incubator, a key player in the alternative protein sector. The team has laid out a roadmap to bring their product to market, with limited early sales targeted for 2025 and a formal rollout planned for 2027.
Building a sustainable business
According to Potter, Profillet is currently pre-revenue but gaining traction as the team is actively engaging with potential commercial partners and conducting tastings with investors to refine its product-market fit.
Their go-to-market strategy will first focus on selling through independent restaurants and direct-to-consumer channels and later expanding to institutional buyers such as school boards and health units as production scales up.
“We’re constantly prototyping and adapting,” says Potter. “This isn’t just about making a better alternative — it’s about creating a more resilient food system.”
Backed by a growing ecosystem
In addition to GreenShoots, Profillet has also garnered support from ProVeg International, Canadian Food Innovation Network (CFIN), Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, and Springboard Atlantic.
The company is also working closely with a Bioenterprise Canada advisor and has recently hired a CEO to help navigate the next phase of growth.
“We want to offer a sustainable, safe, and scalable protein that meets the needs of today and tomorrow — and we couldn’t have done it without the momentum GreenShoots gave us,” concluded Potter.
Since its first cohort in 2020, GreenShoots has supported 48 Nova Scotia-based companies in their journey from concept to commercialization. More information is available at bioenterprise.ca/programs/greenshoots.