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Take it with a grain of salt....unrefined salt.
All salts are NOT equal. Our bodies need salt, it is essential in the balancing of water in our bodies. Regular table salt is refined and stripped of everything good, and as a result you are left with plain old sodium chloride. Did you know that natural salt has up to 84 minerals in it? Table salt has maybe 2. Those are minerals that your body needs! Just like refined flour, refined salt should be kept to a minimum. I never thought I would say this, but you need to check the label of your salt, it may even contain an anti-caking agent. The back of your salt container should have a long list of minerals.
We've made the switch to "real salt", and I just can't understand why it is so much more expensive. Shouldn't the refined and processed salt be more expensive? I would think that something that has to be refined and go through extra steps would cost more. Can someone educate me on this?
~marisa
28 comments:
A Pillar of Salt, by Jon Barron, is a straightforward, knowledgeable article that describes what salt accomplishes in the body and compares refined and unrefined salt.
http://www.jonbarron.org/baseline-health-program/07-31-2006.php
Thanks DJK, I'm excited to read it an educate myself further on this.
~marisa
You're welcome!
I'm looking for more and possibly better information right now.
Dan
I'd imagine the reason behind the expense is due to a relatively small market demand. That seems to be common with just about any "gourmet" item you buy. Same with free range chicken...the free range chickens just run around and eat bugs...why do I have to pay twice as much as a chicken that sits in a shoe box and gets fed ice cream all day?
I guess since not as many people are buying it, they need to raise the price in order to make a profit. With mass produced table salt, so much is made and consumed that the excess supply actually drives the price down.
Hmm... Never will look at salt the same way again! Not sure why the price is so different but I think I agree with the comments above.... It probably doesn't have as much demand and is considered "gourmet". I'm still always puzzled as to why organic (which is about 90% of what I buy from the grocery store always has a much, much longer expiration date than say milk that is not orgainic and full of unnatural preservatives and the difference in taste is a whole other story!
We will be making the switch now with our salt also!! It was one of those things that has completely slipped my mind until now about switching! Thanks!
My first impulse was to say, "It's an economy of scale", but...if they're already pulling the salt out of the mine then why does it cost LESS for the MORE processed stuff. I think it's because the good salt mostly comes from the ocean and the market demand isn't as great as the demand for refined salt.
I suppose refined salt is processed on a grand scale so the price is lower.
I use Real Salt out of Heber, Utah and kosher salt. There is really a taste difference. Sea salt is something I avoid. Do you know what is dumped out in the oceans? Gross.
Good Point about the oceans... I also use Kosher Salt. Not sure if mine's any better than the stuff in the blue "box", but I'm going to go have a look after work.
http://www.realsalt.com/101/
Good information but keep in mind it's from those selling Real Salt.
I'm loving the discussion and all the information. Keep it up guys!
Ugh....Mine is Morton Kosher Salt... I can't find the Nutrition Label anywhere online.
Ever tried Hawaiian pink salt?
Sorry DJK, yours is refined, no good minerals there except for iodine which will have iodine added back in. Two good salts a holistic doctor recommended to me were the Real Salt made by Redmond out of Heber, UT like Maybelline uses, and Himalayan Salt.
Hmmm... Well, my saving grace here is that I don't use any salt on much of anything. Baking? Yes. My dinner? Can't remember the last time.
DJK, you are better than me then. I love salt!
Kristi, tell us more!
Not better than you...just don't need any salt. Most foods are salty enough. I had a friend that salted every bite she took. It was disgusting.
So, you might as well be getting some good minerals and vitamins if you're going to salt up, no?
Glad you posted about this. ki only wish more people knew. I did a post on my blog on this too: http://theurbanhomestaed.blogspot.com/2011/03/why-table-salt-is-posion-and-why-pink.html. We use real salt too. I don't know why it's more expensive but it's worth it. I buy it in bulk at our local co-op.
Does real salt need any adjustment when used for canning? For example, I ruined some food when I went from table salt to Kosher salt. I had no idea that Kosher salt is twice as salty.
I have celtic and himalayan salt, but I just use them - like the 'good dishes' - for special things. I'm glad to find there are resources for real salt in larger quantities for everyday use.
Deb W, yes, real salt is more salty, which is great, you need to use less.
Please give Real Salt a shot. I'm sure you will notice the difference while using less.
How about touring the plant? I would love to read a post about that!
Enjoy.
PS Looking, genealogically, for a cemetery that would have been in existence in 1868 serving the pioneers of Sandy. Any ideas? Sorry for going off topic.
I have been using real salt for years. It always makes me irritated that we have to pay more for them to leave our food alone. The less they do to it, the more we pay! Try ordering in a larger quantity and splitting with several people. It is usually much less expensive.
On a lighter note, you do use less real salt because it is saltier!
Blessings,
Gentleliving, that is a great idea to split it with friends.
Maybelline, I like your idea of touring the plant. I'm going to look into that.
As for the genealogy. My aunt Carolyn is huge into genealogy, AND she lives in Sandy. I just sent her the question and I will get back to you on that one.
I don't like salt. The only time I might use any is lightly in cooking and then I usually use organic sea salt or some other gourmet type salt. Then again, I don't usually add anything to food (butter, pepper, sauces). Ha ha
I suspect the higher cost is the same as sugar. Unrefined sugar cost more, because the refining companies sell it whole and do not get money for each entity. Example: When you refine sugar you get the different levels of molasses which can then be sold separately. When left unrefined you only get payment for the product once. I would guess the minerals extracted from salt are sold to make mineral supplements, so the salt companies make money more than once on their product. Just a thought.
My holistic dentist told me Hain Sea Salt is the best. Has anyone noticed after making the switch that refined salt is way too "salty"? lol
I love sea salt; the flavor is so much more subtle than table salt. But I do wonder if I should worry about the lack of iodine in the salt.
Kristina,
When the salt is refined, iodine is actually taken out, they are just putting it back in. I'm sure most of us are getting enough refined salt and therefore iodine through other sources ie. going out to eat, premade food, etc. There is salt in EVERYTHING.
Someone touched on this a bit, but I'm pretty sure it's more expensive because those minerals they take out fetch quite a price. That said, even the regular old sea salt from mortons that is non-iodized and free of additives is more expensive, so back to economies of scale. The iodine they take out is less than what the put in, and a different form
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