Salt of the Earth

August 1980

中文

Baskets of salt piled alongside the salt fields.

The Chinese people have traditionally included salt with firewood, rice, oil, soy sauce, vinegar and tea in a list of the seven most important commodities in daily life.

The monotony of the straight sandy coast extending from Chiayi County to Kaohsiung County is broken by salt fields whose white color gives a checkerboard effect.

Before Cheng Cheng-kung (known as Koxinga in the West) introduced the solar evaporation method to Taiwan in the 17th century, this zone was regarded as a wilderness supporting only a few fishermen. Salt fields were first established during the Japanese occupation of the island. When Taiwan was returned to the Republic of China in 1945, the Ministry of Finance set up the Taiwan Salt Works to administer the five salt fields in Taiwan at Putai, Peimen, Chiku, Tainan and Kaohsiung, and to improve living conditions for salt workers.

The Taiwan Salt Works uses solar and wind energy to evaporate sea water, leaving behind the crystallized crude salt. At present, all the salt fields in Taiwan are equipped with dykes, water-gates, canals, reservoirs, motors, pumps, and transportation and storage facilities.

The dikes are designed to prevent flooding with sea water. A preliminary concentration of brine is usually accomplished by allowing the sea water to flow through wooden gates into the reservoir, and then to five shallow evaporating ponds separated by dikes. There is a fixed difference in height between every two connecting evaporating ponds. After five days, the brine is sufficiently concentrated and allowed to flow into a cistern.

Motors are used to pump the condensed brine up to three small evaporating ponds at a higher level than the previous ones. After three days, the salinity of the brine in these ponds has reached 25 degrees on the Baume scale, and the brine then flows into the crystallizing pan. After one or two days, the salt is precipitated. The crystals are crushed, and raked into rows where they are allowed to drain for several days. Afterwards, the salt is collected into baskets to be piled along the railway to wait for a small train to pick it up. The piles are usually covered with straw to protect the salt from the rain.

In the past, lung ku che (dragon bone cars) or water cars operated by two persons were used to pump the brine to smaller evaporating ponds from the larger ones. Since the primitive devices were first replaced by windmills and later by electric motors, they have become something of a relic in the salt fields.

Salt workers are paid by time or by piece. As sunlight is used to evaporate the brine, the peak season for salt production is from March to May, when half of yearly output may be gathered. Two salt workers may earn about US$600 a month from each salt pan.

The government grants an allowance of US$200 to each family during the rainy season, which in southern Taiwan lasts from June to August. During this time, the salt workers either recondition the salt beds or take on a side job to further supplement their income.

Though the rainy season ends in October, days are too short to allow much production during the following three months.

Living standards enjoyed by salt workers have been improved in the past 10 years. Since 1976, loans have been made available to construct housing projects, and today nearly all salt workers have their own homes equipped with utilities and modern facilities such as television sets and refrigerators.

The Taiwan Salt Works has set up a recreation center, complete with barber shop, beauty saloon, and low-priced grocery stores to help salt workers' families. Classes in bamboo and rattan handicraft, sewing, knitting, carpentry, mechanics, driving, farming, music, poultry raising and other subjects have been provided to enable farmers to take up side jobs. The education of their children has not been neglected, either.

The salt works is now trying to design machines resembling bulldozers which will replace manual labor in harvesting the salt. As a result of tidal land reclamation projects, many of the original salt fields are too far away from the sea. The Taiwan Salt Works has worked out plans to make the best use of local conditions in different areas of production.

At present, all the salt harvested in the five salt field areas in Taiwan is for industrial use. In 1975, a total capital investment of US$16 million was allocated to set up the Tunghsiao Electrodialysis Salt Factory to produce high quality table salt directly from sea water. As the salt is not touched by hand during manufacturing and packing, purity reaches 99.5 percent. Small quantities of potassium iodide are added to prevent goitre.

The future for salt farmers is considered to be as sparkling as the crystals they produce. During the peak season, a visit to the white salt fields on one of the trains that crisscross them on narrow-gauge railways is an unforgettable experience.

[Picture Caption]

Left: Baskets of salt piled alongside the salt fields. Below: The small train fully loaded with salt.

1. Woman laborer raking crystals into rows. 2. Covered from head to foot against the sun, a woman worker shovels the salt. 3. Salt farmers working in the uniform checkerboard-like salt fields.

Lung ku che (dragon bone cars) or water cars operated by two persons were once used to pump the brine to smaller evaporating ponds from the larger ones. They have become something of a relic in the salt fields.

1. Machines resembling bulldozers will replace manual labor in harvesting the salt. 2. Reconditioning the salt bed. 3 & 4. Modern facilities are installed in the homes of the salt workers.

1. The handy salt harvesting machines designed by the Taiwan Salt Works help cut down on manual labor. 2. The Tunghsiao Electrodialysis Salt Factory. 3. A specialist conducting research to improve salt quality. 4. In the Tunghsiao electrodialysis factory, the salt is not touched by hand during manufacturing and packing, and the purity reaches 99.5 percent.

The small train fully loaded with salt.

Woman laborer raking crystals into rows.

Covered from head to foot against the sun, a woman worker shovels the salt.

Salt farmers working in the uniform checkerboard-like salt fields.

Lung ku che （dragon bone cars） or water cars operated by two persons were once used to pump the brine to smaller evaporating ponds from the larger ones. They have become something of a relic in the salt fields.