Saltsmak is a family-run business with a love for good food and sustainable marine aquaculture. The Swedish food brand utilises sustainably cultivated sea squirts and herring to produce premium, and tasty, condiments.

Founded by marine biologist Fredrik Norén last year, in the small fishing village Lysekil in Bohuslän, Saltsmak crafts umami-rich marine delicacies using sustainably farmed sea squirts. Leveraging the sea squirt’s naturally briny profile – which is sweet, sour, salty, bitter and umami – the brand provides premium products never seen before.

Sea squirts. | Saltsmak: Sustainable new flavours from the sea, nothing else

Sea squirts.

Aquaculture, or aquafarming, has been practiced for thousands of years. It is a controlled form of cultivation and farming of aquatic organisms, including fish, shellfish and aquatic plants. Considered one of the fastest growing food-processing sectors, aquaculture has a bright future, and so does Saltsmak.

“This is our way of working towards more sustainably aquafarming. Building on old fishing traditions, we’re making the most of the raw materials of the sea to develop new flavours, products and dishes,” says Fredrik, who runs Saltsmak together with his daughter Ella. He is an entrepreneur with extensive experience in the industry, once known as ‘the sea squirt king’! Fredrik is the brain behind the celebrated sea squirt condiment developed under the name Marine Taste, before he set up his own brand Saltsmak.

Saltsmak: Sustainable new flavours from the sea, nothing else

“Sea squirts are eaten in Japan, Korea, Chile and the Mediterranean – often eaten raw and seen as a marine delicacy, similar to oysters,” he says. “Sea squirts are the undiscovered gold of the sea, and we’re the first in the world to produce a sea squirt condiment of this kind. It sits somewhere between soy sauce and fish sauce, and adds a fantastic umami flavour to dishes. Imaging a caprese salad with sun-ripe tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and basil, drizzled with olive oil and sea squirt condiment for additional depth.”

Saltsmak also produces an Asian-style fish sauce made from herring, which was the most important commodity for Lysekil historically. “Fish sauce has a long tradition in the Mediterranean and Asia, where it’s used almost like ketchup,” says daughter Ella. “Our fish sauce, made with herring from the North Sea, is a delicious condiment that integrates our local fishing heritage into food in a new way. It works fantastically as a dipping sauce for spring rolls!”

Fredrik and Ella by the sea in Lysekil.

Web: saltsmak.se
Facebook: Saltsmak
Instagram: @saltsmak

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