Heidi Feldman, Founder of Down Island Farms, which M.V. Sea Salt and New England Salt Works fall under, didn’t start out as a salt guru. “I got into it by chance. By taste. By listening to the community,” she says.
Though her professional background includes project management, a stint in banking, and a few other ventures, farming has always interested Feldman. “I grew up in the Central Connecticut River Valley, where the ground was very fertile,” she says. “We always had a garden. My Dad was a child of the Depression, so he knew what it was like to have to grow fruits and vegetables.”
Feldman and her husband, tech consultant-turned-entrepreneurial farmer and master carpenter Curtis Friedman, have gardens, peacocks, and chickens on their land, but it isn’t a high-yield farm. “We did an analysis of what the property could support, and what we could make a living from. The return of investment on ground cropping was too far out from the investment we’d have to make. I’d have to continue working into my 70s. The labor-bio-exchange is massive in farming.”
Armed with this information, Feldman and Friedman decided to grow shiitake mushrooms, which they sold to several restaurants, including Cafe Moxie, Détente, and others. But due to a bad storm, they experienced a failed crop, and began looking for something else to focus on that would keep them in the farming community. “We asked ourselves, ‘wWhat can we do, based on what our land and our bodies can support, that won’t require importing a lot of ingredients?”
Serendipitously, one day Feldman went to Back Alley’s, before it was 7a, and had an epiphany. “The line was so long, I couldn’t get lunch. So I walked into Alley’s General Store, and got a bag of Sea Salt potato chips and lemonade. I was pigging out on sugar, salt, sugar, salt, and I thought, ‘OMG, no one is making sea salt on the Vineyard!’ I ran back inside and found that they carried By the Sea Salt. But they used kosher salt, which is highly processed.”
Feldman reached out to former By the Sea Salt founder Cherrilla Brown and, promising not to use her method, began exploring the idea of creating a new line of sea salt. “I started playing around with ‘Where do you get water? How do you blend it?’ I used the museum’s library. Bow Van Riper was very helpful. I went on YouTube. We did field trips to other saltmakers. We tried three different drying processes, until we found what worked for us.”
The water Feldman and Friedman use comes from the Atlantic Ocean. “At first we used 50 barrels to hold the water. We’d take buckets down, fill them up, walk back to the truck and pour them into the barrels — back and forth,” Feldman says. “After you do that you can’t move your arms for about a week. You’re lucky you haven’t pulled a groin. So we upgraded.”
The duo now use USDA tanks to house the water. “They’re 42-inch cubes, and we load them on the truck and take them oceanside. Through a mechanism, we filter out sand, microplastics, shrimp, algae and other pollutants. Then we send the water off for testing, looking for volatile organic chemicals. To date, we’ve found no chemicals.”
The filtered water is then put into evaporators. “Once it’s dry, we grade the salt. The beautiful white, shiny salt is our first-level — first-class — salt. The second-level salt is for mixing with herbs, and the third-level salt is smoked.”
Feldman doesn’t have a production plant, or employees, as she wants to remain hands-on. “I’m mindful of quality and keeping a manageable-size business. Which is the polar opposite of leveraging the name of Martha’s Vineyard for exploitive reasons. I pride myself that I don’t buy from Amazon or sell on Amazon or Etsy.”
Instead, she sells at the West Tisbury Farmers Market, trade shows, and retailers here and across coastal New England — which is nothing to sneeze at. With a population of more than 15 million people, New England’s retail sales are a significant part of the U.S. economy. “We don’t need to try to reach outside New England. I’m going for the mom-and-pop stores who serve the needs of their community members, and those who come to New England because we’re unique. That’s where I came up with the New England Salt Works idea, which has its own brand and look.”
Feldman shares that their biggest sellers are split by gender. “It’s really interesting. Those who identify as female typically go for lemon verbena and dill. Fancy women love Herbes de Provence. Those who are healthy or want to be healthy buy the turmeric cranberry white pepper. ‘Naughty,’ which is a combo of sea salt and activated charcoal powder, also sells well. “Charcoal powder helps the tummy, and is used in rehabs and hospitals, and in salons for whitening teeth. Men tend to go with the smoked oak, sumac paprika and garlic, and porcini.”
When asked what keeps her engaged in her work, Feldman says that promoting a natural resource our bodies need to survive, with the most sustainable process available — the sun and sea — is a big factor. “Moreover, I love the required combination of physicality, perfectionism, finance, and people skills. I have to say, most days I am exhausted by dinnertime,” she says.
Currently Feldman is gearing up for the holiday season. “We’re looking forward to a strong holiday season and new growth,” she says. “The general goodwill and energy embodied by consumers are moving. And the FOOD! I use our sea salts on everything from cocktails to desserts!”
To learn more about M.V. Salt, go to marthasvineyardseasalt.com. For a list of Island retailers and upcoming holiday events, visit: marthasvineyardseasalt.com/pages/upcoming-events.