An award-winning businessman whose company has made a significant contribution to the local and national food industry has died after an illness.
Cornish Sea Salt founder Tony Fraser died following a battle against Motor Neurone Disease at the age of 52.
A passionate believer in healthy, pure food and also in the environment, the former forester created the Cornish Sea Salt brand in 2008. It became the first company to start English sea salt production for 125 years
Fellow director Ellie Bradshaw said: "He was a truly inspiring individual and business leader and recollecting on just some of the hurdles we needed to overcome in our early days, many lesser men would have quite simply given up."
Mr Fraser moved to Cornwall in 2004 with his wife Nicole and young daughters Juliette and Victoria. He was passionate about starting a business that would have a positive impact on the area. With a keen interest in local history, his idea for the project came about after visiting the remains of an Iron Age salt production site on the coast of the Lizard.
Mr Fraser walked the length of the Cornish coastal path to identify the perfect site, and settled on a wild and remote cove at Porthkerris on the Lizard Peninsula where water purity was at its best.
He spent a further two years researching engineering technologies and expertise from around the world to create an eco-friendly harvesting plant that ensured a benign effect on the local environment.
The end result was a pure and natural, brilliantly white sea salt that retained all the essential trace elements and minerals for optimum taste and health profiles, free from anti-caking agents and chemicals associated with highly processed table salt.
It was quickly taken up by fine food shops such as Fortnum & Mason and Selfridges and many leading restaurants both locally and nationally.
It has long been commended by celebrity chefs such as Rick Stein, James Martin and Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.
Celebrated chef and restaurateur Mark Hix said: "Tony pioneered a new brand of sea salt that not only tastes great but cared about how it was produced and provoked consumers to question the type of salt they were using."
Cornish Sea Salt has gone from strength to strength and is now exported all over the world.
Ms Bradshaw added: "Tony was tenacious and never compromised on quality.
"During Tony's illness, it pleased him to hear of the company's continued success with the new crew at the helm. Tony leaves a huge void and will be sadly missed by us all, but his passion for pure, natural, honest food lives on in one of life's essential ingredients that we need every day."
Mr Fraser died at his home in the early hours of Tuesday, after a three-year battle with the degenerative condition. His funeral, in Kent, will be held on Monday.