To ARISTOTLE salt was “burnt soil”


The combination of the four elements: earth, water, wind and fire.

These four elements give natural life to the salt.


The sea: The water is captured from the waves of the Atlantic Ocean that wash onto the shores of Fuencaliente, in the south of the island of La Palma.

The sun: The primary heating takes place in little ponds where the salt concentrates from 36 gr. /litre to approx. 290 gr. /litre before reaching the crystallization ponds.

The soil: This water with high content of salt is then poured into the salt pans, small rectangular ponds of mud and black rock that attract heat and allow an even higher concentration of 360 gr. /litre – the highest concentration that can be reached.

The air‚ The salt is then removed from the salt pans and placed on the side of the small mud walls and allowed, with the help of the trade winds, to dry sufficiently to be stored.

The salt workers operate in the traditional ways.

Collection… Since ancient Roman times salt has been collected and appreciated as a special commodity. Certain traditional tools were used then that are still in use nowadays, such as the rake and scraper and the “cedazo” or sieve, the latter used especially in the collection of the much-appreciated salt blossom.

Storage…Before the first autumn rains the salt crop must be stored, as the harvesting takes place between May and October to November. The wheelbarrows and the spades represent craftsman’s tools, to be used with care so as not to damage the structure of the salt pans that yield this delicate natural product.

Maintenance During the winter season, the salt pans are cleaned and repaired for the next crop.