The Rise of a Halifax Jerk Sauce Company
HARRIETSFIELD — Paul Hill has been expanding his Jamaican jerk sauce business since he first launched in 2016 with just a single sauce recipe. But Hill’s Jamaican Jerk Sauce now includes products for BBQ, wings, pasta, and more.
On top of his own recipes, Hill’s facility in Harrietsfield, Nova Scotia handles the production for 14 different companies. Hill, who often gets up before sunrise and works 11-hour days, is getting so busy he aims to build a new production centre in Mount Uniacke.
Hill has racked up a significant list of entrepreneurial accomplishments over seven years. And every time he achieves a new goal, there is one person who comes to his mind.
“Whenever I accomplish something, I always call my mom back in Jamaica and tell her. It makes me proud because all she wants is for us to be productive members of society,” said Hill.
“Where we came from, most of the people that I used to hang out with, they’re either dead, in jail, or abroad. Right. For me to look back on that, it makes me proud. I think it makes my family proud.”
Hill grew up in an area of Montego Bay, Jamaica called Railway Lane, a place he refers to as a “ghetto.” Nonetheless, he grew up around hard-working people. His grandparents, his mother, and his aunt all owned shops, and Hill still has a fondness for the island country.
“Jamaica is the land that I love. I grew up in the ghetto; there wasn’t really much there. But we got by. We’re working families. We weren’t middle-class or upper-class people, but we got by.”
Hill moved to Halifax by the time he turned 20. Years ago, he was making his own sauce as a hobby and a passion. It was his friends who encouraged him to start selling it. Hill gained even more confidence after he discovered the wonders of pimento, aka allspice. It’s a key ingredient in traditional jerk sauce and it transformed Hill’s recipe.
After adding pimento, Hill played a little game with himself to test his own confidence. He bought a generic bottle of jerk sauce from a grocery store and had himself a taste test.
“I took the pimento home and tried a few batches of it. Once I discovered the difference it makes in my jerk sauce, I thought it was actually better than what’s in store. So, I immediately went and bought a bottle and tried it against mine. I realized that mine is way better.”
In 2016, Hill’s Jamaican Jerk Sauce started getting carried by Pete’s Frootique in Halifax. But it was in 2017 when Hill made a business relationship that would launch his product to the next level. It was that year that Sobeys began carrying his sauce. It was also a Sobeys rep who suggested that Hill include a second recipe for a spicier jerk sauce.
“Nova Scotians are very supportive of local businesses. And I feel like we are getting the support from the local folks here. I wouldn’t be where I am right now without Sobeys. if it wasn’t for Sobeys giving us a platform, I wouldn’t be where I’m at right now.”
In the early days of his business, Hill contracted another local company, Acadian Maple, to handle the production of the sauce. But once Acadian Maple got out of doing co-packing, it forced Hill to find his own facility.
While in limbo with his production, Hill happened to be an assistant manager at Halifax bar Durty Nelly’s. The owner let Hill cook up his sauce in their kitchen. But then the pub’s insurance company said that damage from a fire would not be covered if it happened while Hill was cooking up his own stuff. That’s when Hill was forced to move into the 1,200-square-foot facility in Harrietsfield.
A few years later, and Hill has already outgrown that and looking to expand once again.
Despite the success of the business, Hill’s humble approach to marketing hasn’t changed. To this day, you may stumble upon him while shopping at Sobey’s or another local shop. He will be set up with a table, personally handing out samples. Meeting his future customers face-to-face is still of utmost importance.
“It’s very important for me to get my products out there, especially when you have products that’s unique to some people. A lot of people don’t even know what jerk sauce is. I think it’s important to go there, give them a taste of what you’re selling and talk to the customers. I enjoy just talking to them and sharing recipes and ingredients.”
Another passion of Hill’s is aiding in Nova Scotia’s food security problem. Hill knows from firsthand experience that the vast majority of our raw ingredients come from outside Atlantic Canada. In an era of globalized economy, farms big and small continue to disappear. That’s why he created Maritime Foods, a company that promotes the use of ingredients grown here.
The company makes ketchup and salsa. And Hill has one rule for how he makes these tomato-based products: he won’t use any tomatoes not grown in Atlantic Canada.
But how much longer we can depend on local produce is in serious doubt. A new report says 40 per cent of Canadian farmers will retire by 2033.
“I was talking to one of the farmers that I deal with, and I was shocked when he said that he doesn’t know if he can even do this anymore. He’s considering shutting it down. And he has a big farm, and he produces a lot of stuff. He goes to the market every week and you think that they’re doing great, but they’re not.”
Derek Montague is a Huddle reporter in Halifax. Send him your feedback and story ideas: [email protected].