From the forest to the plate, with Jérémie Postel: Fir products

A comforting herb with a pronounced taste and a natural medicine with a thousand virtues, balsam fir grows in abundance in Quebec and yet it is still a resource that is not used to its full potential. Jérémie Postel, a former landscaper and forest enthusiast, knows a lot about all it has to offer. The young man travels through the mixed forests of Suton to pick young balsam fir shoots in order to concoct beneficial and tasty products. Here is the little story of Jérémie Postel: Les produits du sapin , with whom I had the pleasure of talking recently.

From passion to livelihood

Jérémie and his wife have always had the habit of working with plants, she who is a herbalist and he who studied biology, ecology and forestry. He has been making his own fir honey for several years, for his personal consumption and for those around him, fond of this unusual product. At that time, Jérémie had neither the time nor the intention to go into business. However, a friend once convinced him to attend a Christmas market to sell his honey. This is how, in 2014, he took his first steps into the world of entrepreneurship, on a part-time basis.

Since its fir honey was very popular with people, its production gradually increased year by year. It was not until the fall of 2019 that Jérémie Postel quit his job to devote all his time to his business.

Discovering tree products

Fir honey deserves a bigger place in Quebec pantries. This sweet, sweet and woody combination is perfect to enjoy with meats and cheeses. Jérémie lists many ways to savor fir honey: " It's excellent on baked salmon, on a slice of toasted bread topped with a fig and melted goat cheese, or for caramelizing apples in a sweets ”. In addition, it is a delicious remedy to combat many everyday ailments, honey and fir having many medicinal properties.

Fir honey is obtained by macerating young fir shoots in honey. These are harvested by hand in June, when they are still tender and it is easier to recover all their nutritional value. Not being a beekeeper, Jérémie collaborates with his friend David from the Api Farm in Mansonville, who provides him with rich honey representing all the floral variety of the region. For a few months, the flavor and the nutrients of the fir tree are absorbed by the honey by the principle of osmosis: " As honey contains much less water than the sprouting of the fir tree, it will therefore naturally suck the water from that -this. And by the same token, the honey will also recover a good part of the plant's sap, vitamins and minerals ,” explains Jérémie.

Since 2019, he has also been offering fir kombucha, which he produces in association with Sencha Kombucha in Cowansville. Wasting nothing, he recovers fir shoots which will have been confit in honey to flavor his kombucha. As with honey, Jérémie collaborates with producers who allow him to develop the products he has in mind by relying on their expertise and creating, at the same time, good human relationships. “ I really want to develop as many collaborations as possible and set up a network. The bigger my network, the more I sit on something secure ”.

A possible export?

The entrepreneur has also planned to export his products, a project that is unfortunately put on ice for 2020, due to the pandemic. Although he had no intention of exporting at the start, colleagues behind well-known Quebec companies suggested this trick to him: "The strategy for developing your brand in Quebec is is to go through the international and then come back here. If you are recognized around the world, which takes little time , your sales will explode in Quebec! »

Jérémie is not limited to the tree and intends to introduce other products eventually. “ My goal is to acquire land with fir trees, animals, nut trees and other plants, including elderberry, in order to have a more diversified range of products that highlight our heritage” . He also dreams of the day when Quebecers will see fir products in the same way as maple syrup and that they too will go in search of fir shoots in the forests.

Jérémie's fir honey can be found on the Signé Local shop . To get fir kombucha or to know all the points of sale, go to its Facebook page .

Reviewed by Marie-Pascale