Nutritious and abundant, bull kelp has found its way into salsas, spice mixes, pickle jars, hot sauces and a plethora of other foods produced by several niche companies in the U.S. and Canada.
Taking the U.S. market by storm, however, is Barnacle Foods, an operation run by three native residents of Juneau, Alaska.
Their product line includes various seasoning blends, four types of salsa, an appropriately named “Bullwhip” hot sauce, and even a spicy chocolate bar. Many of the items have come ashore in nearly 200 stores across the lower 48 states, with Cost Plus World Market ranking as the company’s latest retail account. Consumers in North America can also shop from the web site.
“The kelp adds a salty, savory base to our items,” said Max Stanley, who became a partner in Barnacle Foods shortly after it was founded by Matt Kern and Lia Heifetz four years ago.
For the salsas and hot sauces, it is added into large kettles to cook with the other ingredients.
The Bullwhip sauce, which also contains tomatoes and Piri Piri chilies, is one of the company’s top sellers. It’s priced at $5.95 per five-ounce bottle, with sales projected to reach between 40,000 and 50,000 units by the end of this year.
For the seasoning blends, the kelp is dehydrated, although the pickling process starts initially by cutting the lengthy stalks into cross sections before entering their sweet, spicy, and dill brines.
What does a kelp pickle taste like? “They’re not much different than pickles made from cucumbers,” Stanley assured.
Long, ropy bull kelp grows prolifically from May to September in sub-tidal waters from Alaska to Southern California. It is particularly rich in vitamins A, C and K—and carries payloads of calcium, magnesium, potassium, and bulk fiber.
Stanley added that the company this year purchased 25,000 pounds of the kelp from local “farms” and self-harvested 50,000 additional pounds to meet consumer demand.
(Lead photo: l to r, Matt Kern, Max Stanley, and Lia Heifetz. All photos courtesy of Barnacle Foods)