There are several ways to make salt, and here are two common ones:
The first is the use of seawater to dry salt. This method is one of the oldest and one of the main ones that are still in use today. In areas with sufficient sunshine and suitable climate, seawater can be used to dry salt, introduce seawater into the salt drying pond, and evaporate the water through the sun to gradually form salt crystals. Salt ponds are usually built at the seashore or at the mouth of a river, and use natural conditions of sun and wind to accelerate water evaporation.
The second is to use mines to produce salt. This method uses underground brine to make salt. In areas where there are large quantities of salt mines underground, wells are drilled to extract brine, which is then introduced into the salt pans for drying. Brine usually contains high salt content, and after sun exposure, the water evaporates, and the salt in the brine gradually crystallizes and precipitates to form salt. This method requires a lot of land and resources, so it is more costly, but it can obtain high-quality salt.
In addition, there are also production methods such as natural salt produced by volcanic eruptions and salt extracted from plants. Different production methods will obtain different qualities and ingredients of salt, so choose the appropriate preparation method according to the use and needs. In daily life, most of the edible salt we usually buy is made by the salt drying method, while industrial salt may be made by mine salt production or other methods. Regardless of the production method, it needs to go through strict quality testing and safety control to ensure the quality and safety of the salt.