Cervia preserves traditional 18th-century salt production methods

In Cervia, a volunteer association is preserving the traditional method of producing ‘sweet salt’ using techniques dating back to the 18th century. The Gruppo culturale Civiltà salinara, composed of approximately fifty retirees, successfully revitalized an abandoned salt marsh in the early 1990s.

This site, the Salina Camillone, remains one of the few locations in Italy practicing multiple harvests, a method that predates the mechanization introduced in the late 1950s. The production process relies on seawater, sun, and wind, utilizing manual tools such as shovels, rakes, and wheelbarrows.

The salt produced is recognized for its lack of bitterness, a quality once noted by Luigi Veronelli. The area is currently recognized as a Slow Food presidium and a FAI site. This summer, the salt marsh produced 600 quintals of salt, which are distributed to visitors of the Museo del Sale or sold through the Cervia salt marsh natural park.