# A question about salt
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-salt/623127
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [May 26, 2012, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-salt/623127 "2012-05-26T01:18:11Z")
**Posts on this page:** 7
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2012, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-salt/623127/1 "2012-05-26T01:18:11Z")
Need answer fast. š The question is, do all types of salt come from the sea? As a bonus, does anyone have a list of all types of salt, both edible and non-edible?
-XT
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### Author:  [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2012, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-salt/623127/2 "2012-05-26T01:21:24Z")
You mean do they currently come from the sea? If so, the answer is definitely no - I live in a major salt-mining area.
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### Author:  [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2012, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-salt/623127/3 "2012-05-26T01:22:36Z")
> [@XT](#):
>
> Need answer fast. š The question is, do all types of salt come from the sea? As a bonus, does anyone have a list of all types of salt, both edible and non-edible?
>
> -XT
no, not that i know of.
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### Author:  [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2012, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-salt/623127/4 "2012-05-26T01:24:23Z")
Originated in the sea, not mined. The dispute is Iām saying that not all salts originated in the sea, and my father in law, using Alton Brown as an authority, is saying that all salt comes ultimately from the sea (I believe he MEANS sodium salt, but he doesnāt believe there is any distinction). There is a good cigar on the line hereā¦and my google-fu is weak tonight and I canāt get a definitive answer, so I figured this is the best place to ask.
-XT
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### Author:  [@Michael63129](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Michael63129)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2012, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-salt/623127/5 "2012-05-26T01:45:40Z")
> [@XT](#):
>
> Originated in the sea, not mined. The dispute is Iām saying that not all salts originated in the sea, and my father in law, using Alton Brown as an authority, is saying that all salt comes ultimately from the sea (I believe he MEANS sodium salt, but he doesnāt believe there is any distinction). There is a good cigar on the line hereā¦and my google-fu is weak tonight and I canāt get a definitive answer, so I figured this is the best place to ask.
>
> -XT
While it is true that some salt deposits were laid down when ancient seas evaporated, all of the salt and other dissolved minerals in the ocean originally came from rock that was [eroded away](http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/whyoceansalty.html).
As for types of salt, a salt is [chemically defined](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salt_%28chemistry%29) as an ionic compound that is the product of an acid-base reaction (for example, reacting hydrochloric acid and sodium hydroxide produces sodium chloride, with water also as a product, but water isnāt a salt because it isnāt ionic). Aside from sodium chloride, potassium chloride is commonly used as a sodium-free salt substitute. Many other salts can be eaten as well (e.g. calcium chloride, magnesium chloride, etc), although not all taste salty (this is why reduced sodium food still has some sodium in it, even then, some people donāt like the taste).
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### Author:  [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2012, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-salt/623127/6 "2012-05-26T01:58:45Z")
other threads
> **[Where did all the salt come from?](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=634410)**
>
> Looking at all the salt caves, and the amount in the oceans, there seems to be a lot of salt (NaCl, that is) around. How did this come about as the earth was formed? If the earth was formed by coalescing of materials similar to those in the asteroid...
> **[Salt: From the mine to the table](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=614966)**
>
> I was watching a video with my son filmed in a salt mine on the shores of Lake Erie where they claim the salt is being mined for use on (snowy) streets. Perhaps I should watch again more closely, but I got the impression\* the salt being mined was...
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### Author:  [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2012, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-salt/623127/7 "2012-05-26T03:37:11Z")
> [@XT](#):
>
> Originated in the sea, not mined. The dispute is Iām saying that not all salts originated in the sea, and my father in law, using Alton Brown as an authority, is saying that all salt comes ultimately from the sea (I believe he MEANS sodium salt, but he doesnāt believe there is any distinction). There is a good cigar on the line hereā¦and my google-fu is weak tonight and I canāt get a definitive answer, so I figured this is the best place to ask.
>
> -XT
Gotcha.
ā[Sodium carbonate](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium_carbonate) also erupts from Ol Doinyo Lengai, Tanzaniaās unique volcano, and it is presumed erupted from other volcanoes in the past but, due to these mineralsā instability at the earthās surface, are likely to be eroded.ā