History
Did you know that salt is one of the oldest natural minerals in everyday use by man?
Its importance is literally prehistoric. Millions of years ago, as the first signs of life developed in the sea, the salt in seawater was crucial to its existence. Later, when life emerged onto the land, this dependence continued. Today, man relies on salt just as much as his amoebic ancestors.
They may have survived on a daily diet that contained less than 0.25g salt, but this natural chemical has played a major role throughout the development of civilisation.
History shows that both the early Egyptian and Chinese civilisations discovered salt's 'magical' property of preservation. They were the first to soak fish in saline solutions - the culinary method of 'salting' that's still used to this day.
With its wider use, both as a preservative and as an additive to flavour 'bland' fresh foodstuffs, came increased value. Roman soldiers were paid in salt (Latin Salarium), which gives us our modern day 'salary', and a poor labourer was considered to 'not be worth his salt'.
Next, salt's functional properties came to light. People starting using it to make cereal-based products, such as bread and dairy products. The rest, as they say, is history.