Have you ever stopped to think about where salt comes from? If I had been asked a couple of months ago if I knew where salt comes from, I would have said "the store." Obviously, I know where salt comes from, I've just never thought about it.
Rock salt is salt that is mined. There are mines just for halite, or rock salt. Halite is used for gritting roads or as a means to melt ice and snow. Lake salt comes from Great Salt Lake and is used as de-icer, road salt, water softener salt, and for salt licks for livestock. Sea salt comes from the sea, of course, and is made by evaporating the water.
Microplastics were first discovered in salt in 2015. Since then, studies have found that microplastics are present in 90 percent of table salt that has been tested. Asian brands were found to be especially high in the concentration of microplastics but the reason is not yet known. The average adult consumes 2000 microplastics per year from salt alone. One kilogram of sea salt contains over 600 microplastics.
So how are microplastics getting into salt that we consume? Microfibers in clothing and single-use plastics are the biggest culprits. Plastic finds its way into our oceans and is subjected to a process known as photodegradation. Photodegradation is when UV light weakens the plastic and it breaks down into smaller and smaller pieces. Microplastics are present in water, air, seafood, beer, and salt. It's the price we are having to pay for our lifestyle choices.
Microplastics in table salt
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