Lia Heifetz is the co-founder with Matt Kern of Barnacle Foods, a kelp-centric food company based in Juneau, Alaska that makes salsa, pickles and seasonings.
SeafoodSource: How did you get into the kelp-based food business?
Heifetz: My entry into the kelp food business was fairly organic. I am born and raised in Juneau, Alaska, and grew up spending time on the water. Throughout college, I built an interest in sustainable food systems and harvesting and preserving my own food. Kelp salsa and kelp pickles were a household staple; instead of coming home from a fishing trip empty-handed, we would harvest. It soon became a seasonal tradition—every summer we'd go harvest kelp and come home to make a batch of kelp salsa and pickles. Our batches grew over the years, and soon we were not only filling our cupboards but the cupboards of friends and family.
We were inspired to turn this seasonal tradition into a business for a number of reasons. We identified a gap in the nascent mariculture industry in Alaska—Alaskans are beginning to farm kelp and there needs to be someone to buy it. By creating delicious shelf-stable foods we are able to create the framework for the kelp farmers to expand their operations. Both farmed and wild kelp are renewable and sustainable as a food source. They require no fresh water or fertilizers to grow, nor arable land. We were excited to bring this food source to more people and capture the essence of Alaska's pristine coastline at the same time. Most kelp on the market today fits into the Asian cuisine genre, so we are excited to create mainstream products that feature kelp in large proportions.
SeafoodSource: What is a typical day on the job like for you?
Heifetz: We're a small core team, which means that my days vary. I could be out on the water harvesting, in the kitchen making the products, packing up orders or on the phone with retail partners or distributors. I head up Barnacle's marketing efforts so that often means coordinating photography and marketing materials. There is never a dull moment!
SeafoodSource: How does your business complement or compete with the traditional seafood-based industries in Alaska?
Heifetz: Harvesting wild kelp and cultivating kelp are complementary to traditional seafood-based industries in Alaska. The farming of kelp is a great opportunity for fishermen who are looking for ways to buffer their fishing season income. There is the opportunity to use existing boats and skill sets during the shoulder seasons of the peak fishing period (spring and fall).
Additionally, we work very closely with fishermen and small seafood processors by contracting their boats to harvest wild kelp from and using their existing infrastructure and gear—fish totes, refrigeration, tenders to move kelp that we've harvested from the harvest grounds to our processing facility. There are endless opportunities to collaborate with fishermen and existing seafood processors. And the products that we make pair amazingly well with other Alaskan seafood products—like kelp salsa and salmon tacos.
SeafoodSource: What skills/character traits did you find were most important for launching this business?
Heifetz: Being open-minded and collaborative are continually important and were key to launching Barnacle. We've learned a lot since the launch of our company, and from the beginning have critically thought through the challenges we face. We've stayed open to asking questions, lots of questions. More often then not if we can't answer these questions on our own, we will seek out someone who knows more about the topic then we do. Building a strong network of people and other businesses has been key to our growth, and we are excited to pay it forward.
SeafoodSource: What have been your greatest challenges and successes thus far?
Heifetz: Every year we've grown and learned and have a new set of challenges in front of us. In general, doing business in Juneau, Alaska, is challenging. The only way to get here is by boat or plane; we have no roads in or out. For this reason, you don't see a lot of manufacturing taking place here. There are only a few examples of successful Alaskan businesses that are able to create an export product in final form. Part of Barnacle Foods’ mission is to plant the value chain for Alaskan resources in the places the resources come from. To date, we do all of our manufacturing in house – we're rooted here in Alaska. Additionally, we’re the first kelp salsa to market. Creating an entirely new product has presented some new challenges, but seeing our products on the shelves of grocers and specialty stores across the country has been a huge milestone and success.
SeafoodSource: What are three things people would be surprised to learn about kelp?
Heifetz: Kelp is the future of food. There are numerous species of kelp, each with a different life history and reproductive cycle. The type of kelp that we harvest, bull kelp (Nereocystis leutkeana) has a similar life cycle to an annual plant—it grows and dies each year—and within one year it can grow to be up to 60 feet long and grows up to 10 inches per day. For this reason, it makes for a super renewable resource, and if wild harvested or farmed responsibly it is an ideal food resource.
Kelp is a carbon sink. Kelp can absorb up to five times the amount of carbon from its surrounding environment compared to land-based plants. Kelp forests are the lungs of the ocean! Plus, kelp requires no fresh water or fertilizer to grow, it just needs clean ocean water and fast-moving currents. There are few foods that can claim this.
Kelp is a superfood. At Barnacle we like to call is your "ocean multivitamin." Kelp has more than 35 vitamins and minerals; it basically has everything your body needs to function.
SeafoodSource: Where are the most interesting places your business has taken you?
Heifetz: On a daily basis, our business takes me places I would have never imagined. From driving a forklift or box truck filled with totes of kelp, being on the water harvesting kelp, donning a hairnet to jump in on the jarring line or attending tradeshows—our small team keeps things interesting.
Harvesting kelp typically takes us to some pretty incredible places, usually accompanied by equally interesting people. We often work with fishermen in their off-season to have access to boats and loading systems used by the fishing industry. The waters of the Inside Passage are beautiful and wild and fierce; being on the water usually makes for an adventure. One of my favorite kelp harvests this last year was outside of the small coastal community of Pelican. Pelican is on the edge of the outer coast; it's rugged and beautiful with big weather. We spent about 48 hours camped out at the airport waiting for a weather window for our small float plane to make the trip out there. When the time finally came, our 45-minute flight dropped us right at the harbor where we loaded onto the boat and headed out to harvest.
SeafoodSource: When you aren't working, how do you spend your free time?
Heifetz: In my "free time" I can be found harvesting, freezing, canning, drying or sizzling something local (besides kelp!) While I love kelp, Alaska's seasonal bounty is filled with other delicious foods—berries, spruce tips, deer, mushroom, salmon. I guess I did a good job at turning a passion into a career.
