Oryx Desert Salt Marks Five Years at Whole Foods Market as Desert Salt Emerges in American Grocery
Oryx Desert Salt, the South African pioneer of the desert salt category, celebrates five years on national shelves at Whole Foods Market in the United States. In that time, the brand has grown from a hand-packed startup to a presence in roughly 485 Whole Foods Market stores, about 230 World Market locations, and onboard service for JetBlue and Amtrak, where approximately 150,000 individual sachets are served each month. The company’s growth is anchored by a salt source certified microplastic-free at the source.
Defining a New Category in the Spice Aisle
Positioned alongside refined table salt, sea salt, and pink Himalayan salt, desert salt offers a distinct origin story and mineral profile. Oryx Desert Salt is harvested from a remote salt pan in the Kalahari Desert, where three underground streams moving through ancient Dwyka rock feed a vast subterranean brine aquifer. The surrounding region has no industry, agriculture, or settlement for 175 miles, creating a uniquely pristine environment for salt formation.
Crystallized naturally under the desert sun, the salt is packed as harvested—unbleached, unprocessed, and free from artificial additives such as anti-caking agents. Its certification of microplastic-free at source is scoped precisely to the point of origin, acknowledging that airborne microplastics make guarantees beyond the source impractical for any producer. This origin-based approach addresses concerns raised in recent years about the presence of microplastics in many commercial sea salts, offering a structural solution rather than a technological fix.
Five Years at Whole Foods Market
“Reaching five years with Whole Foods Market means more to us than any single sales number, because it proves that a small, initially self-funded brand from South Africa can earn and keep its place in American grocery by refusing to compromise on purity,” said founder and CEO Samantha Skyring. “Our salt leaves the Kalahari exactly as nature made it, and shoppers have shown us, year after year, that this is what they want on their tables.”
This milestone caps a period of steady international growth. Oryx Desert Salt now exports to more than 23 countries, employs a team of around 35 people, and supplies over 130 partner brands that formulate with its salt.
From a Dining Table to Hundreds of Stores
Oryx Desert Salt began in 2010 when Samantha Skyring launched the company without outside investment, later selling her home to fund an initial 34-tonne inventory of Kalahari salt. In the early days, she filled grinders at her dining table while raising her young son, introducing the product at farmers markets, neighborhood delis, health stores, and restaurants.
In 2013, Skyring began a 12-year period of mentorship and investment with Evolve Capital (led by brothers Ian and Garth Solomon), and later partnered for five years with Zur Ventures to help build the brand’s vision. After a challenging 2020 that cut sales by an estimated 60 percent, Skyring focused on a single goal: reaching the Whole Foods Market category buyer directly. The effort led to a national listing in September 2021, the foundation for the five-year milestone celebrated today. Along the journey, Skyring was recognized as South Africa’s Entrepreneur of the Year in 2024.
Purpose-Driven by Design
Oryx Desert Salt’s product philosophy extends beyond origin and purity into packaging and environmental impact. Each glass grinder features a durable ceramic mechanism—rather than the plastic heads found on most disposable grinders—and is designed to be refilled using compact refill boxes. The company’s motto, “Refill Not Landfill,” reflects a commitment to waste reduction and a circular product lifecycle.
Community at the Core
From its first month of trading, Oryx Desert Salt committed a share of every sale—not just profit—to the ǂKhomani San and Mier communities, honoring the original custodians of the Kalahari region. These ongoing contributions flow through the TFPD Foundation. The company has also partnered with Project Biome to support initiatives that reconnect people with nature, with contributions drawn from a portion of American sales.
Community-centered sourcing shapes the flavor range as well. The chili in Oryx’s chili salt is grown in backyard community gardens in Gugulethu township and surrounding communities near Cape Town, while small-scale Madagascan farmers supply the peppercorns for the black pepper line.
Availability
Oryx Desert Salt grinders and refills are available at Whole Foods Market, World Market, and Natural Grocers stores nationwide, and in onboard service on JetBlue and Amtrak.
About Oryx Desert Salt
Oryx Desert Salt is a founder-led South African company harvesting pure, sun-dried, unrefined salt from an ancient underground brine source beneath the Kalahari Desert. Named for the resilient desert antelope that inspired its founder during a 75-mile walk through the Namib Desert, the company supplies retail, foodservice, and ingredient partners in more than 23 countries, directs a share of all sales to the indigenous communities of the Kalahari, and packages its products in refillable glass grinders with ceramic mechanisms under its motto, “Refill Not Landfill.”
