The Hedgie Story    Named after Hedgie, the family pet hedgehog, Hedgie’s Hot Stuff is now four years old. Steve Nelson started making salsa for family and friends at home 20 years ago when he had a good tomato crop and experimented with salsas. He developed four types – mild, medium, hot and hotter – that formed the basis for the company. He started the company in 2005 with a passion for hot food and encouragement from friends and family. Steve’s children, now 13 and 11 have been involved in the company from the start. They are the official product tasters because Steve says that his taste buds have been desensitized to the habanero pepper, the hot in the hot stuff. The kids were happy to taste as long as they had the right to name the company. Since Hedgie was the name of their pet African hedgehog, Hedgie’s became the name of the company. Hedgie’s salsa is only made when local produce is ripe and most of the tomatoes and peppers come from a local farm in Whately, Mass. Steve wants all of this products to be socially and ecologically responsible.