SEA SALT

" Amed salt would have to be the best salt I have ever had... Bought from a little old lady on the beach at Amed and paid the asking price of 20 000 for about 700g plus bag size. I'm going back to Amed just to buy salt next year and will buy a lot more. Have seen salt at Ubud market and it did look different so not sure where it came from. Customs didn't look at my salt, spices or vanilla pods. I did tell them I had them, but they were only interested in wood products."

          The Amed area used to be known for its salt coming from seawater. It provided as livelihood. Today this still takes place in some small communities near Amed and Jemeluk. At the beach you'll see large wooden containers, they tank these containers with seawater and then let it evaporate slowly. When the weather is dry and sunny, you can see the salt workers working on the beach, both men and women. It is no problem to talk with them or to take pictures.
All work is done under the beautiful, watchful gaze of Gunung Agung, the sacred mountain of Bali.<

However, this technique of salt production is threatened with extinction. The salt farmers sell their land, where they build bungalows, which are used by the tourists. Their children then look for job opportunities where they can earn more money. Or they look to the south with the bright lights of Denpasar and tourist areas of Kuta and Seminyak. For them there are only a few sources of income in the area of Amed, but most of them are going south. Trips / tours to these areas could help the farmers to retain this traditional way of salt for posterity. The farmers would also be able to earn some extra money.

A few poor families continue with this traditional way of making salt. For outsiders it is an interesting sight to see the rows and rows of wooden bins along the beach. The process is more complicated and it takes more time than we think. In total, it takes about 8-10 days to turn sea water into salt. So the process is going:

They get two buckets of water at a time from the sea. This is done with a kind yoke on his shoulders (which our farmers had in earlier times).

Clean the bottom clean and smooth the bins

Pour the salt water in the bins

Let all evaporate 3 to 4 days

Repeat this a few times

Collect the salt. Now you have sea salt.

Salt production is nowadays a decreasing, but still important industry in this area. If you drive along the coastal road, you can see the villages with the large, dry salt pans with a crust of salt crystals, which you can buy in boxes. Those little boxes of gourmet Bali salt crystals you'll see in delis and specialty stores all around the world. They began their long journey in the salt pans of the Amed area.