where does most of our table salt come from
seawater
title: Salt text: Food-grade salt accounts for only a small part of salt production in industrialized countries (7% in Europe), although worldwide, food uses account for 17.5% of total production. In 2013, total world production of salt was 264 million tonnes, the top five producers being China (71 million), the United States (40 million), India (18 million), Germany (12 million) and Canada (11 million). The manufacture of salt is one of the oldest chemical industries. A major source of salt is seawater, which has a salinity of approximately 3.5%. This means that there are about of dissolved salts, predominantly sodium () and chloride title: History of salt text: History of salt Salt, also referred to as table salt or by its chemical formula NaCl, is an ionic compound made of sodium and chloride ions. All life has evolved to depend on its chemical properties to survive. It has been used by humans for thousands of years, from food preservation to seasoning. Salt's ability to preserve food was a founding contributor to the development of civilization. It helped to eliminate dependence on seasonal availability of food, and made it possible to transport food over large distances. However, salt was often difficult to obtain, so it was a highly valued title: History of salt text: relatively cheap, and often iodized. There have been reports as to the value of salt in historical times, however it has never been more valuable than gold. Salt comes from two main sources: sea water and the sodium chloride mineral halite (also known as rock salt). Rock salt occurs in vast beds of sedimentary evaporite minerals that result from the drying up of enclosed lakes, playas, and seas. Salt beds may be up to 350 m thick and underlie broad areas. In the United States and Canada extensive underground beds extend from the Appalachian basin of western New York through title: Sodium chloride text: sea, which allow the formation of clouds in otherwise non-polluted air. Salt is currently mass-produced by evaporation of seawater or brine from brine wells and salt lakes. Mining of rock salt is also a major source. China is the world's main supplier of salt. In 2017, world production was estimated at 280 million tonnes, the top five producers (in million tonnes) being China (68.0), United States (43.0), India (26.0), Germany (13.0), and Canada (13.0). Salt is also a byproduct of potassium mining. Sodium chloride Sodium chloride , also known as salt (though sea salt also contains other chemical salts), is title: Sea salt text: salt from the ancient Inca hot springs, or rock salt (halite). Black lava salt is a marketing term for sea salt harvested from various places around the world that has been blended and colored with activated charcoal. The salt is used as a decorative condiment to be shown at the table. The health consequences of eating sea salt or regular table salt are the same, as the content of sea salt is still mainly sodium chloride. Table salt is more processed than sea salt to eliminate minerals and usually contains an additive such as silicon dioxide to prevent clumping. Iodine,