Hawke’s Bay born and bred Perry Cornish is a whirlwind of advice, laughter and determination. It is easy to get caught up in his passion for the Coromandel salt farm he and partner Erin Mone have created, and once you try it, I guarantee salt will never be the same again! Words Lucinda Diack, Photos Felicity Jean.

There is nothing more relaxing than listening to waves roll and crash on the beach – whether it is in the heat of summer or a cool crisp winter morning, there is a sense of mental restoration that comes from breathing in the salty air and pausing to take a moment. Being able to do this every day is a dream come true for Perry Cornish and his Irish partner Erin Mone. And I can see why. The wide expanse of Opito Bay in the Coromandel is like something from a postcard. It is quintessential New Zealand – a rugged coastline, white sand and native bush. It is also Perry and Erin’s office.

Drawn to the supposed ‘flexibility’ of a career in agriculture, after high school Perry completed a degree in agricultural science at Massey University. ‘I grew up surrounded by orchards, and agricultural science was where I wanted to go. It was an amazing degree but hard core,’ he laughs. ‘If I had known how hard it was, I might not have done it, but I am passionate about learning and in my last year I balanced it out with some marketing papers.

‘The way salt could impact a dish really got me thinking about how it was made. Maybe we could make it.’

‘I really enjoyed the marketing papers and my part-time work marketing and promoting bands for the university radio station that I did during that period, so when I headed overseas on my OE, I picked up roles in these fields.’ For 10 years Perry based himself in Europe, travelling and working with fast-moving consumer brands. ‘I wanted more than just the traditional Kiwi OE experience,’ he explains. ‘And while it was longer than most people spend over there, I wouldn’t change it for the world.’

Returning to New Zealand, Perry found himself disillusioned with where to go next. ‘It was hard, it was a big adjustment mentally and I needed a mindset switch. I knew I would be terrible at making sandwiches so didn’t think I should work in a café,’ he shares with a grin. ‘Instead I opted for a call centre job. It allowed me to do the work and walk away at the end of the day. It gave me the mental space I needed to plot the next step.’

The next step was one that allowed him to build on his previous success in marketing and advertising, this time in finance. ‘It was a hectic, crazy decade of long hours, unhealthy lifestyle choices and financial success,’ he explains. ‘I got sick of it and started to crave a return to simpler things, to life in the country. I also had two small children who I wanted to spend more time with.

‘My priorities started to switch towards spending time on the 10 acres I’d bought out of Auckland with the children, cows, sheep and chickens rather than the long hours of a corporate life and constantly being “on”.’ It was time for a change.’

Change came in a number of forms – a marriage break-up, more travel, a career shift and the purchase of a bach at Opito Bay in the Coromandel. It was also when Erin Mone stepped into his life. It was a time to assess what was really important.

‘I had been coming to the bay for nearly 25 years and have probably stayed in 60 per cent of the baches here over the years,’ he laughs. ‘It is beautiful. It is where I used to come to decompress and now it is home.’ With less than 50 permanent residents, Opito Bay is, in Perry’s words, ‘a magic mix of farming and beach. It is a down-to-earth small Kiwi village.’

It is also the inspiration and fuel for Perry’s latest business venture with partner Erin – Opito Bay Salt. One which perfectly marries his corporate and advertising experience and perhaps even his degree in agricultural science. ‘We used to travel back and forth from Auckland, but the dream was to move there full-time and fulfill this crazy idea we had to work with salt.’

Describing himself as a late adaptor of salt, four years ago Erin gifted Perry some artisan sea salt. ‘I loved it,’ he enthuses. ‘The way it could change or impact a dish really got me thinking about the role of salt and in turn how it was made. Maybe we could make it?

‘So, like all great stories, we hatched an idea over wine, which, coupled with some paper bag maths had us thinking we could pursue a business in salt. We just had to work out how to make it first.’

And so, they gave it a go. ‘We collected seawater, made some cloches to store it in and left them, tightly closed and weighted down on the deck at the bach, while we returned to Auckland for our corporate lives, thinking we would return to find lots of salt where the water had been …’

Instead, they returned to find the cloches filled with bugs and leaves. ‘We didn’t know where we had gone wrong, so we tried again, only to return to find them full of leaves and muck once more.’

‘It is beautiful. It is where I used to come to decompress and now it is home.’ With less than 100 permanent residents, Opito Bay is, in Perry’s words, ‘a magic mix of farming and beach’.

Turns out they hadn’t weighted them down enough and the cloches had blown from the deck onto the neighbours’ lawn, who unaware of the purpose of them, had both times returned the cloches carefully to the deck!

Three years since this first foray into salt, the bay is their permanent home, the corporate careers have gone, and they have certainly perfected the art of salt, making a name for themselves across the culinary scene for their innovative flavours. ‘Lockdown accelerated what we were doing as we had time on our hands and it was then that we built our first greenhouse.’

While there are other salt makers in New Zealand, Erin and Perry are quick to share the difference between a salt maker and a salt farmer – of which they are the latter. ‘Salt makers essentially take the salt water and boil it to create a brine,’ explains Perry, ‘which sees a reduction in the minerality and flavour of the product.

‘While we opt for a slower process, it is one that preserves the natural minerals and creates an astonishing flavour – essentially it tastes like the sea!’ Which in its most simple form is exactly what it is.

‘Using buckets, the tractor and a trailer we collect around 1,000 litres of water at any one time and transport it up to our greenhouses,’ describes Perry. The greenhouses are heated solely via the sun to 55–65 degrees Celsius and left for up to six weeks in summer and 14 in winter; after which time the water has evaporated, leaving behind its precious gift – luscious crystals of salt.

Growing up with a father who was a chef, Perry is a foodie at heart and relishes working with Erin on new salt flavours and combinations. ‘The whole thing doesn’t happen without Erin,’ Perry states. ‘Our strengths really complement each other and we plan the business like a military operation. She is the rock and brings all the energy and happy enthusiasm.’ Erin is also the one in the kitchen working through practicalities of the flavours. ‘I will take inspiration from my travels and wax lyrical about how I think something, like the gin salt could work, but she is the one who executes it.’ As well as their Natural Coromandel Sea Salt they have a growing range of flavoured salts; each one processed by hand with local seasonings before being packaged up for sale.

Favoured by some of Aotearoa’s top chefs, including Ben Bayly and Vaughan Mabee, Perry and Erin delight in seeing their product out in the wild. ‘It puts such a smile on my face,’ says Perry. ‘But it is the face-to-face that we get with our customers at markets that really blows us away. Talking to them, understanding how they use the product, encouraging them to try something different – like the Furikake Seasoning or Kelp Salt – is so inspiring. Getting their feedback and thoughts often gets us thinking in different ways too.’

‘Using buckets, the tractor and a trailer we collect around 1,000 litres of water at any one time and transport it up to our greenhouses.’

It hasn’t all been easy though. ‘We are careful where and when we harvest our seawater as we want it as pure as possible, so don’t harvest within three days of rainfall or a storm.’ With 2023 a year of constant rain and storms in the Coromandel, it was particularly challenging for a small start-up business reliant on good weather. ‘The roads were a disaster so we couldn’t get the product out, the rain never stopped, the markets were gone. It was hard. We worked seven days a week just to keep the word out there.’

But that has paved the way for growth this year – in terms of both expansion and awards. ‘Being recognised by the Outstanding Food Producer and NZ Artisan Awards in the last few years has been amazing, it is external endorsement of what we have done and where we are going. No matter what industry you are in, or what you do, it is always nice to have your passion for something recognised by others.’

For the young man who was drawn to an agricultural science degree for its flexibility and connection to the outdoors, Opito Bay Salt is a dream come true for Perry. ‘If you dream of doing something different, do it,’ he concludes. ‘You never know where it will take you. I am just grateful that my crazy dream to farm salt has brought me back to the land, and nature. To that quintessential Kiwi way of life so many aspire to.’