Salt farmers in Lebanon survive the country's crises the good old way

Record ID: 1685808

  • Title: Salt farmers in Lebanon survive the country's crises the good old way
  • Date: 23rd August 2022
  • Summary: ANFEH, LEBANON (AUGUST 12, 2022) (REUTERS) (PART MUTE) VARIOUS DRONE SHOTS SHOWING MAN WORKING IN A SALT EVAPORATION POND (MUTE) VARIOUS DRONE SHOTS SHOWING SALT FARMER, IMAD MALEK, WALKING NEAR SALT EVAPORATION PONDS (MUTE) VARIOUS OF MALEK USING SHOVEL TO COLLECT SALT VARIOUS OF SALT BAGS (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) SALT FARMER, IMAD MALEK, SAYING: "Salt production back in the days used to benefit many families. Local production used to cover national needs and get exported outside Lebanon in the seventies and eighties when the salt production era was at its best. In the nineties the Lebanese state started importing salt and lifted customs fees, so imported salt was cheaper than locally produced salt.” VARIOUS DRONE SHOTS SHOWING SALT EVAPORATION PONDS BY THE SEA (MUTE) (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) SALT FARMER, IMAD MALEK, SAYING: “Most salt evaporation ponds are now abandoned, full of grass and not functioning, you see them here or at Chekka or Selaata or Anfeh but all are not working.” VARIOUS DRONE SHOTS SHOWING ABANDONED SALT EVAPORATION PONDS IN ANFEH (MUTE) VARIOUS OF MALEK MOVING WATER PUMPING WINDMILL VARIOUS OF WINDMILL IN MOTION (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) SALT FARMER, IMAD MALEK, SAYING: “The water pumping windmill has a story, it is a part of the salt ponds. They used to drag water from the sea through the windmill and fill up the ponds, then on some days there was not enough wind to pump water, they used instead pumps working on electricity or fuel. Now, in the last two years, we re-installed the water pumping windmill and placed a solar system. We are now 100 percent eco-friendly in all of the salt production processes, we do not need fuel, gas or electricity.” DRONE SHOTS SHOWING MALEK NEAR WINDMILL (MUTE) (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) SALT FARMER, IMAD MALEK, SAYING: “It takes almost 20 days for water to evaporate if we fill the pond with 20 cm of seawater.” VARIOUS OF MALEK POURING SALT INTO BAGS WINDMILL (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) SALT FARMER, IMAD MALEK, SAYING: (SOUNDBITE ENDS ON MALEK HOLDING SALT IN HIS HANDS) “This is coarse salt, which is mainly used for pickles and in cheese factories, it can be also grinded and used as table salt.” DRONE SHOT SHOWING SALT GATHERED AT A SALT EVAPORATION POND / SALT EVAPORATION PONDS AND THE SEASHORE (MUTE) DRONE SHOT SHOWING SEASHORE / SALT EVAPORATION PONDS / ABANDONED SALT EVAPORATION PONDS (MUTE) (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) SALT FARMER, IMAD MALEK, SAYING: “I told my father earlier to leave this job but because we are attached to it and I was born and raised near the sea and the salt ponds, we are trying our best to preserve this heritage and pass it on to our children.” VARIOUS OF MALEK USING SHOVEL TO GATHER SALT DRONE SHOT SHOWING MALEK WALKING AWAY FROM GATHERED SALT (MUTE) VARIOUS DRONE SHOTS SHOWING SALT EVAPORATION PONDS / SEASHORE (MUTE) DRONE SHOT SHOWING ABANDONED SALT EVAPORATION PONDS / SALT EVAPORATION PONDS / SEASHORE / SEA
  • Embargoed: 6th September 2022 10:03
  • Keywords: Financial collapse Fuel prices Lebanon Salt production Sustainability
  • Location: ANFEH, LEBANON
  • City: ANFEH, LEBANON
  • Country: Lebanon
  • Topics: Middle East,Society/Social Issues
  • Reuters ID: LVA001988422082022RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text:In northern Lebanon, local salt farmer Imad Malek remains one of the few salt producers in the country fighting the extinction of his craft.
    The 27-year-old electrical engineer was born and raised in the coastal town of Anfeh, growing by salt ponds where he was taught swimming by his father at the age of two.
    Malek inherited all the knowledge about salt farming and production from his family.
    “Salt production back in the days used to benefit many families. Local production used to cover national needs and get exported outside Lebanon in the seventies and eighties when the salt production era was at its best. In the nineties the Lebanese state started importing salt and lifted customs fees, so imported salt was cheaper than locally produced salt,” he said.
    Many salt evaporation ponds that existed for centuries, and from which generations have grown making their living, have now been abandoned and barely serve as a tourist attraction.
    But for the remaining few practising this ancient trade, like Malek, Lebanon’s financial meltdown, the on-going crisis, fuel price hikes and power outages has pushed them to re-introduce old eco-friendly traditional salt production techniques at evaporation ponds.
    “In the last two years, we re-installed the water pumping windmill and placed a solar system. We are now 100 percent eco-friendly in all of the salt production processes, we do not need fuel, gas or electricity,” Malek said.
    It takes 20 days for water to evaporate from ponds, leaving crystal coarse salt which is gathered and packed into bags for sale.
    The salt farming process starts in June and lasts till September and almost 300 tons of salt are produced from Malek’s ponds yearly.
    Locally produced coarse salt is mainly used for pickled products and in cheese factories, it also can be used as table salt, but salt farmers nowadays face huge competition from cheaper imported products.
    Locally produced salt costs around $120 per ton, while imported salt is almost $30, Malek said.
    (Production: Issam Abdallah)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2022. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
Register