Daneson is a play on the phrase Danish son, Larson and Denman - family names and a heritage. More or less this is what I am; born of a mother with Danish parents who grew up with reminders of all things Danish.  And Daneson as a company came by way of London, Monaco, and a few other locals while pursuing a career 'real job'. 

That said, I needed a change and long story short: I like toothpicks; I like making things; and the challenge of creating a business blew my hair back in terms of how it operated and in terms of getting people to rethink what they put in their mouth seemed fitting. 

Like it says on the box: we strive to only do business with American and Canadian suppliers.  Our birch is American.  We're working on sourcing FSC birch for our toothpicks (there will be more on this later), but for now, we can at least see where our trees come from and where we are going.  We only use natural ingredients.  Where possible, we use organic.  Many recipes use ingredients collected by hand on the Georgian Bay Shore where we like to spend our time.  This is a good thing because getting natural flavor to stick to wood is time-consuming.  

Just about everything you behold with Daneson was crafted, designed, and pulled together by me, Peter.  The recipes; the graphic design; the packaging; website, copy, etc..  This is not a well-oiled big business machine, this is one guy who busts his ass, gets help from his friends and who is bank rolled by his boot straps. 

Daneson toothpicks are expensive because it's the cost of doing good business.  Let me be clear - this is a pride before profit business.  My first boss Bruno Morawetz put it this way:  "It is better to sleep well than it is to eat well."  It is better to have a clean conscience and sleep well than to have a guilty conscience and eat well.  The price you're paying reflects the cost of making extraordinary small batch toothpicks with hygienic, environmentally practical packaging.  

There's lots to tell about toothpicks and Daneson so stay tuned for more.