With a shortage of truck drivers resulting in supply issues, you may be wondering where to find that special gift. Shopping from small, local businesses and buying things that are harvested in New York could be the solution for a thoughtful present this holiday season.
Consider the Syracuse Salt Company, which was founded in 2015. There are local seasonings just in time for the gift-giving season. Syracuse Salt Company is a family affair, led by David Iannicello and his daughter Libby Croom.
“My father, 90-year-old father, is here every day. We still get along, mostly, so that’s a good thing, that family members can still get along and work together,” said Croom.
They got the idea after Croom took a trip to Maine and brought her dad home a gift of specialty salts.
“My dad said, ‘You know, we live in the Salt City. Why doesn’t anything like this exist here?’ It kind of just snowballed from there, and blew up pretty quickly,” said Croom.
After a lot of research, hard work and collaborating with the U.S. Geological Survey, they now have their own 280-foot well that they harvest real Syracuse salt from.
“We pump the water from the well into the tanks. Then we bubble air into it. We’re evaporating the water. This is what we end up with. We take some out, let it drain, dry it. There’s the nice beautiful flakes,” said Croom.
