Stephen Cook started making Maine sea salt over 20 years ago, when he was searching for a Maine product to create and saw plenty of imported sea salt in stores but none made from the sea outside his door. A period of experimenting with different ways to harness the sun's rays to dry sea water followed, and he now evaporates sea water in ten 15' x 200' foot green houses.
The sea water is harvested at the slack tide, then moved into the first set of houses, to allow anything in the water to settle out, and to reduce the sea water to 50% salinity. This step is repeated and the water filtered and reduced to 70% in another set of greenhouses. At that point, water is finally pumped to the finishing house for making salt. Here the pool completely evaporates leaving behind the sea salt.
Piles of salt are placed in bins to further drain, then taken to the production area where they are ground. Grinding releases yet more moisture from the crystals, which are then layered between linen towels to finally remove any remaining moisture.
The salt is never heated, nor is it washed. Maine Sea Salt is then sifted, to separate various crystal sizes for packaging.
