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At MV Sea Salt, Heidi Feldman turns local seawater into small-batch salt — and weathered a devastating storm with help from her community.
As photographer Jocelyn Filley and I pull up to Little Bridge at State Beach in early June to document the process of making Martha’s Vineyard Sea Salt, owner Heidi Feldman is pushing a minivan stranded in the sand. Two bewildered Islander seniors sit inside, looking embarrassed. Well, that’s typical Heidi, I think, helping others despite having a thousand things to do herself. Because many people know this about Heidi, it’s not surprising that, when a ferocious storm destroyed part of her farm, along with months of sea salt, savings, and potential revenue, the community showed up for her and her husband, Curtis, to help get them back on their feet. Vineyard karma at its best.
But back to State Beach. It’s one of those pinch-me-I-live-here afternoons, cerulean skies and sparkling water. Still too cold to swim, even if the spring temperatures are a welcome respite after an extra long winter. Heidi is joined by friend Mike Lyons of Carroll’s and D & D Hauling, and they’re on a tight schedule. When collecting ocean water, Heidi has to wait for the stars (well, the moon phase, tides, current, and the weather) to align, for their 8 to 12 collections a year. Heidi and Curtis were granted permission by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Department of Public Health to collect water from State Beach, the first step in crafting their sustainable, small-batch sea salt. Mike backs his truck, loaded with four USDA food-grade tanks, onto the jetty and pumps 9,000 pounds of ocean water into the tanks. Twenty minutes later, the tanks are filled, and then it’s time to head to Heidi and Curtis’ Down Island Farm in Vineyard Haven.
Tucked away off Stoney Hill Road, the Farm is home to a pride of peacocks — Ginger, The Professor, and friends run amok with a dozen or so chickens while their 13-year-old dog Ranger snoozes on the porch. Huge free-standing solar panels installed in 2018 welcome you to Evap 1 and the newer, larger Evap 2 hoop house (perhaps Heidi needs to give them names as creative as the peacocks’?). The panels power the entire farm, and excess energy is fed back to the local grid. Heidi and Mike offload the water from the tanks into Evap 2 via a high-density filter, which removes organic material, aquatic life, and microplastics. Now it’s time for solar evaporation and gentle seasonal winds to work their magic, with sunlight shining through the tunnel’s covers creating steam, eventually leaving only pure salt crystals on the potable water liners. Again (as with their water collection schedule), they’re at Mother Nature’s mercy; evaporation can take three to four weeks in the summer or three to four months in the late fall to spring, depending on temperature, relative humidity, wind, and sun position. It was 90 degrees in Evap 2 in early June, but summertime temperatures in the hoop house regularly exceed 140 degrees, so you can imagine the intensity of salt farming in high summer. “It’s cardio and a spa session in one!” jokes Heidi. “We harvest salt at dusk before the dew settles, or early in the morning, all to avoid heatstroke.”
It’s bittersweet standing by Evap 2, thinking how much has happened to this farm in just a couple of years. Heidi and Curtis launched the Island’s only sea salt company in 2013. Designed and built by Curtis, Evap 1 afforded limited production, and the addition of Evap 2 was motivated by demand and the fact that drying cycles are more unpredictable now due to climate change. Evap 2 was erected by a close associate just in time for the 2024 West Tisbury Farmers Market season. But disaster struck in the late evening of December 11, 2024, when torrential rain and hurricane-force winds caused the heavy steel infrastructure to shift dramatically and the cover to be ripped off, exposing Evap 2 to the elements, and destroying 250 pounds of harvestable sea salt. Eighteen months of work and savings, gone in one night. The potential for a successful holiday gifting season, shattered. The community was heartbroken. Heidi felt defeated at first, but then she got busy.
While they waited for parts to arrive and for New England spring weather to temper, Evap 1 came to the rescue, providing 100 pounds of salt to softly kickstart the season. A GoFundMe campaign, initially dismissed by Heidi but encouraged by other small business owners, helped to raise much-needed funds. Customers purchased special items specifically for the rebuild. Then, in a deeply heartening move, two fellow artisans offered a loan to jumpstart the purchasing of parts. “I never wanted to ask for money, but we hit our goal,” said Heidi. Throughout the late spring of 2025, more than 40 volunteers lent their building know-how, equipment, and good spirits to resurrect and fortify Evap 2 to make it a more weather-resilient building. Fueled by the love for this dynamic duo (and homemade food from Quitsa Kitchen), everyone worked together to get Evap 2 back online before the first 2025 farmers market. “Builder Hocine Khelalfa, Curt’s co-workers from South Mountain, our neighbors and their kids, and many small business owners blew me away,” gushed Heidi. “Friends and friends of friends gave up their weekends to climb ladders, schlep supplies, and share their skills with us. I can be pretty salty, but to say we appreciate it all is an understatement.”
“Standing orders from customers who said: ‘fulfill when you can!' flabbergasted me,” says Heidi. “The investment in relationship building since 2013 paid off in the emotional and financial support displayed during our downtime. To me, this means we are fulfilling our mission to become part and parcel of not only the Island community, who we treasure, but also the greater small business community we serve.”
That’s the thing about the Vineyard. The community shows up. In the off-season, Heidi sells at the holiday market at Gayle Gardens. She catches up on the administrative side of running a business, but that, she says, is isolating, so she assists fellow makers with their winter projects and volunteers for several nonprofits, including Habitat for Humanity, the Agricultural Fair, the Chamber of Commerce, and the Massachusetts Cultural Society. It’s affirming to see that love reciprocated.
Just weeks after the 2025 rebuild was complete, Heidi and Mike were back at State Beach to collect water, and by July, farmers market regulars and visitors alike were lining up for a fresh batch of newly-harvested salt. To celebrate, Heidi commissioned Ed Bates of EK Resin Creations from the Cape to hand-dip their glass hostess jars in a beautiful blue color reminiscent of a dip in the ocean, each one unique and reusable. I’ve turned mine into mini snack jars, and gifted jars to friends who use them to store everything from spare change to Q-tips.
“It’s really a one-person operation,” Heidi says. “Curtis is a full-time department lead and master carpenter at South Mountain. I do it all — collecting, harvesting, coming up with flavors, designing packaging with About Signs’ Melissa Patterson, labeling, delivering, fulfillment, customer service, everything!” And those who know Heidi, know she does it with a big smile and even bigger heart. Heidi goes to great lengths to upcycle and rehome shipping materials, recycle business supplies, and keep the farm’s energy footprint small, all calculated into her cost of goods sold. “I believe every business can do better to reduce waste and reduce the toll it takes on the planet,” says Heidi.
I couldn’t wait to get in the kitchen with Heidi to talk flavors. After the steam is convected off the water, she scoops up the dried flakes and takes them into her workshop. She carefully combines the flakes with organic herbs and spices to make their nine varieties. Lemon Verbena and Dill is a top seller, an ideal finishing salt for potluck-friendly deviled eggs, while Farm-Smoked Oak is a hit with grillers. Inspiration is hyper local, leaning on her experience collaborating with Vineyard chefs such as Kevin Crowell of Detente and Mauricio Librado of the Atlantic Fish and Chop House. My favorite is the Blueberry & Honey, which melts into a beautiful purple tie-dye pattern on food, also a favorite of James Beard Lifetime Award Recipient Dr. Jessica B. Harris. “Try a pinch on ice cream,” Heidi suggests, for a homemade version of her salted caramel vanilla collaboration with Mad Martha’s. Or, sprinkle it over salted caramel pots de crème (see below), a recipe created by pastry chef Marnely Murray for my cookbook, The Martha’s Vineyard Cookbook (Rizzoli, 2025). You’ll also find MV Sea Salt Premium in several of Enchanted Chocolates' confections, as well as in Yommi’s frozen pops (both neighbors at the Farmers Market).
Looking ahead, Heidi knows growing the business will continue to take a village. She is in the early stages of partnering with Seven Hills Foundation, welcoming adults with disabilities to label lids. Curtis just completed a dedicated workspace — a five-year project — and the efficiencies of having all the physical elements of the business (save for evaporation) in one place is “just astounding,” says Heidi. Ever the entrepreneur, Heidi launched one-ounce “Whimsies” at the Farmers Market this summer to test new blends, such as Maple Miso, inspired by Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg’s The Flavor Bible (Hachette, 2018).
As I write this, I’ve just made a batch of aromatic chive blossom salt by drying a few chive blossoms and nestling the purple petals in my upcycled jar of MV Sea Salt Premium. Now I’ll add a few blue borage flowers for a confetti of color and wonder what new and delectable flavors inspired by her community Heidi will dream up next.
Salt 101
With so many salts available, how do you know which one to use?
Table Salt: Heavily processed, table salt is usually the cheapest salt available. It typically contains anti-caking agents, iodine, and bleach. Table salt is often boiled, resulting in nutrients being washed away. It has a slightly metallic taste.
Sea Salt: Harvested from evaporated ocean water, sea salt is available in fine, coarse, or flaky crystals. Sea salt is minimally processed, has a pure taste, and is prized by chefs and home cooks as a finishing salt, providing texture and crunch.
Kosher Salt: This flaky white salt with larger crystals than table salt is a favorite for cooking. It is usually free of additives like iodine and anti-caking agents, resulting in a clean taste suited for salting water and seasoning.
Pickling Salt: Pure, fine salt without additives, ideal for brining, pickling, and fermentation.
Salted Caramel Pots de Crème
- Yield: Makes 6
Description
Ingredients
The custard
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2/3 cup local honey, such as that made by Island Bee Company
- 1/4 tsp sea salt, such as MV Sea Salt, plus more for finishing
- 2 large eggs
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
The salted caramel sauce
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup local honey
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 tsps sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F. Place six 6- to 8-ounce ramekins in a baking dish and set aside.
- For the custard, simmer the heavy cream, milk, honey, and salt in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Meanwhile, whisk the eggs, yolk, and vanilla in a large bowl.
- Once the cream mixture comes to a simmer, add it to the egg mixture in a thin stream, whisking constantly. Strain the mixture through a sieve into a large measuring cup. (Don’t skip this step! Straining ensures a smooth custard.) Pour evenly among the ramekins.
- Cover each ramekin tightly with foil. Fill the baking dish halfway up the sides of the ramekins with boiling water. Bake the custards for 30 minutes. They should jiggle slightly in the center. If the custards are too loose, return them to the oven and check every 5 minutes. The custards will continue to cook once they’re removed from the oven. Allow them to cool completely in the pan, then remove the ramekins and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, and preferably overnight.
- For the sauce, combine the sugar, honey, and water in a deep, medium stainless steel pot. Brush the sides of the pan with a wet brush. Turn the heat to high, and cook until golden brown, about 8 minutes (every stove is different, so watch for the color more than the time). Don’t step away as the caramel can quickly burn.
- Carefully pour in the cream and whisk — the mixture will bubble up. Whisk in the vanilla and salt and cook for 2 additional minutes. Transfer to an airtight container, cover, and cool.
- To serve, spoon sauce over each pot and finish with sea salt.
Extra Egg Whites or Yolks?
There’s no need to pitch an egg white when a recipe calls only for yolk. Add it to egg dishes (like a frittata), swirl it into a soup, or fry it into leftover rice. You can also use it as a binder in homemade granola or use it to add a foamy, frothy head to a cocktail (like this vodka-based Morning Glory). If you have a few left over whites, consider making meringue (here’s a fancy dessert, or you can just do the meringue part and bake them into cookies!).
