Will Kerton, Owner of local business, Droitwich Salt, talks about their heritage as one of Taste Worcestershire's food heroes. The 2024 Taste of Worcestershire campaign runs from 7th-27th October and will showcase/celebrate the county's exceptional food and drink scene.
- Could you tell us a little bit about your background?
As 5th generation Droitwich farmers, we have a strong sense of custodianship for our land and heritage. My wife, Gillian, her Dad and I, all Droitwich born and bred, were fascinated by the history of Droitwich Salt, especially as our own farm landscape was a big part of the story.
When the council suggested reviving Droitwich Salt, we were keen to get involved, and after learning more about its heritage, the brine’s purity and unique taste of salt, we were fully on board to restart production.
- Can you tell us why you are called what you are?
The Droitwich Salt name is quite self-explanatory, however, not everyone knows that the ‘wich’ in Droitwich means salt! Droitwich was synonymous with salt from the Bronze Age through to the mid-19th century, attracting the Romans, and receiving prestigious international and even Royal recognition.
Is there a reason why you’re based where you are?
The historic pumphouse where we collect our brine from is located less than three miles from our farm. We had space on our farm to add salt tunnels and the facilities needed (including a biomass boiler to gently crystalise the salt using renewable energy). This meant that we could keep the whole process including transportation, production and packaging all in house, further supporting our sustainable/low food miles ethos – some may say it was meant to be!
- How would you describe your business to someone who isn’t aware of you?
Droitwich Salt was the main reason the Romans settled in the area. The salt was given a Royal Charter by King John in 1215 and it went on to become a huge industry in the 19th century, putting Droitwich firmly on the map. Today Droitwich’s brine springs are thought to be one of the purest (and oldest - circa 200 million years old) springs in the world, creating the intensely flavoured and smooth salt that everyone knows and loves. How could we not bring it back to life?!
- What makes your business different?
We use a unique local natural resource to create our produce from within three miles of our farm. We use renewable energy to gently crystalise the salt in our salt tunnels when the sun can’t do it alone. Our salt is award winning, has a worldwide following, and has already been featured on TV on a number of occasions.
Michelin Star Chef, Brad Carter, helped us to develop a number of different seasonings, including Charcoal and Coastline salts. He also nominated us for the prestigious Slow Food’s movement “Ark of Taste” which showcases and protects heritage and small-scale food products and we’re very proud to be a member of it today.
Droitwich Salt is incorporated into chef’s dishes across the country – from Great British Menu Chef Pip Lacey to local food hero champions such as Steve Guy AKA The Hungry Guy (Slow Food UK’s personality of the year 2023).
Our salt can also be found in quality farm shops and delis across the country, and it’s been warmly welcomed and used by local food heroes including The Beefy Boys, Two Farmers, Peter Cooks Bread and Tubby Toms, to name a few.
- What’s your favourite product in your line?
It has to be our original product – Droitwich Pure Salt. The award-winning product is so versatile in its different grades it really can be used to improve the flavour of any dish.
- Could you tell us a bit about your industry awards or accolades you may have?
We are proud to say that we have a few awards under our belt, including:
- 2023 Grinding Great Taste 1 star
- 2022 Charcoal GT 1 star
- 2020 Sprinkling and Grinding GT 1 star
- 2019 Coastline and Charcoal GT 1 star
- 2018 Grinding GT 1 star
- 2018 Best New Product at Ludlow - 3 golds for Charcoal, Sea Truffle and Coastline - Silver for Smoked
We have a few exciting new things in the pipeline. We are currently considering an expansion to our production facilities to include a dry ageing unit so we can salt our own meat. We are also looking into expanding our beauty range of products using the salt – keep your eyes peeled for updates!
- What is your favourite food/meal of all time?
It has to be one of our own grass-fed steaks with a pinch of our Charcoal Salt and some locally grown asparagus.
- How do you keep up with the latest food trends?
We love food and tend to follow chefs that cook simple yet delicious food with local seasonal ingredients. We follow them on social media, look out for them at foodie events that we attend always introduce ourselves in case there’s an opportunity to collaborate!
- Who or what inspires/motivates you?
Chefs we admire, delicious food and different flavours are big inspirations for us. We love our Droitwich Salt Ambassador - Brad Carter’s cooking and we were lucky enough to eat with him earlier this year, a real treat! We’ve also recently met Karan Gokani who invited us to this restaurant where we were blown away by another incredible dining experience.
- How do you come up with new ideas/products/dishes?
We take inspiration from a dish we’ve eaten somewhere, and we have several chef friends that help work with us on new product suggestions and ideas which we’re grateful for. We’re always on the look out for new products and/or flavours to blend with our salt and we’re excited to see what the future holds for Droitwich Salt.
“We’re proud to be based in Worcestershire and to be involved in this campaign. Keeping things local and supporting local businesses is something we are really passionate about.” – Will Kerton, owner of Droitwich Salt.
