This is: Naples Canning Co.

All images courtesy of Naples Canning Co.

With the hopes of becoming closer to the agricultural system in Southwest Florida, David McCone started Naples Canning Co., a company that makes small batch jams, pickles, and mustards, with the highest quality ingredients. David is a big foodie with a mission to start a conversation on understanding where and how our food is grown, and how it is being treated.

10 Questions with David McCone, owner of Naples Canning Co.

1. Tell us a little bit about your background and how you ended up in SWFL? 
   David: Been in Naples now for almost nine years. Went to college for marketing and finance, decided I didn’t like it that much, and made the decision then that I needed to do something that I love. I went head first into the culinary world.

2. What led you to start Naples Canning Co.?
   D: I started this business as supplemental income and everything was going towards my wedding. I was selling on farmers markets, and I transitioned to online, and that really took off. I’m from Michigan, but I’ve always been drawn to southern food, and preservation methods.

3. When did your passion for making pickles and jams started? 
   D: I’ve always had a passion for food, 10-15 years ago to follow my passion. At one of the restaurants that I was working at, we were working on a bar menu, a grouper sandwich. I had out about 15 different pickles, different flavor profiles, and different cucumbers. It was so fascinating to me that you could change something by a quarter of a teaspoon and it’s going to taste completely different. That is where it all started.

4. Where are your ingredients coming from? 
   D: All the vinegar I use is actually imported from France, aged in oak barrels. My organic produce is coming from Inyoni Organic Farm, just off Immokalee road. There’s another farm in North Fort Myers called 12 Seasons Farm, they grow amazing tomatoes and many different varieties of tomatoes.

5. Why is it so important to know where our food comes from? 
   D: Understanding, and working directly with your farmer, knowing what their practices are is important. It is important because I’ve seen it, a lot that produce is picked green, picked early. They are going to sit in a factory and speed up the process of ripening it with chemicals. But when you pick a product that is ripe, there is going to be so much more nutritional value and taste 1,000 times better.

6. Of everything you make, which one is your favorite to eat? 
   D: I like spicy food, I make this pickled jalapeño and Fresno pepper, put some shallots in there, and then I use apple cider vinegar and a little cane sugar in that one. You can put it on tacos, eggs, even hot dogs.

7. Which one is your favorite to make? 
   D: The jams, because it is such a slow process, it’s just patience. It is very methodical, so it is very pleasurable for me.

8. What is your favorite restaurant in SWFL?
   D: Overall, Bar Tulia, it is the best combination of food, atmosphere, and service.

9. What inspires you daily? 
   D: I get inspiration in a lot of different ways. I’m always looking at what’s new, what’s different in the food scene. Food 24/7.

10. Any advice for people wanting to start their own business?
    D: Two big ones, patience and following your passion.

You can listen to the full interview below or follow us on our Gulfshore Local The Podcast on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts from.

You can find Naples Canning Co. at the Third Street South Farmer’s Market every Saturday from 7:30-11:30 OR on their website: www.naplescanningco.com