Kemah Natural Spring Salt Product Description and Distinctive Features: Kemah Natural Spring Salt is an amorphous crystallized salt obtained through the evaporation method using natural energy sources (solar heat and wind) in salt pools after the underground waters passing through the rock salt beds in the Munzur Mountains dissolve the salt layer naturally present in the mountain and emerge to the surface as salty water. The salt's production in Kemah is mentioned in the travelogue "Seyahatname" by the traveler Evliya Çelebi, and it is noted to have been used in the Ottoman palace kitchen. The salinity level (salinity degree) of Kemah Salt varies between 14% and 24% depending on the flow rate. Features of Kemah Natural Spring Salt include: - Easily crumbles and readily dissolves in the mouth. - Has a tongue-biting taste. - Odorless. - Although it has a crystal structure according to the cubic system, it is amorphous (lacks a stable crystal structure). - Shiny appearance. - Consists of approximately 40% sodium and 60% chlorine. - Moisture content is 1.6% - 2.3%. - Hardness is 2.5 mg/L. - Specific gravity ranges between 2.1 and 2.35 g/cm³. The region between the Munzur Mountains, consisting of Karadağ in the north and limestone formations in the south, is the Kemah formation. The Kemah salt flats are established on gypsum lands with extensive coverage within this formation. The rock salt beds within the gypsum series are crucial in the formation of salty water. The Kemah salt flats, where Kemah Natural Spring Salt is obtained, are located within a valley nestled between high mountain ranges in the Eastern Anatolia Region. Therefore, during the dry periods when production is most intense in Kemah, factors such as low rainfall, relatively high temperatures compared to the surroundings, and the obstruction of moist air masses from the north and south by the surrounding mountains contribute to high evaporation, which is crucial for salt formation. After sending the salty spring water to crystallized pools, low precipitation, high temperature, and high evaporation are essential for salt formation. Kemah Salt is particularly preferred in cheese production. Production Method: Kemah Natural Spring Salt is allowed to rest by transferring the salty water solution reaching the surface to storage and grading (concentration) pools without the addition of any chemicals or additives. After reaching a salinity degree of 28% in the first concentration pool, it is transferred to the second concentration pool. In this pool, with an increase of approximately 2% salinity degree, it is transferred to another concentration pool. This process concludes when the salty water in the final concentration pool reaches a saturation degree of 36%, allowing it to crystallize. Any excess heavy metals that may be present in the salty water solution are gradually precipitated and separated in each concentration pool. The separated salty water is transferred to production pools (crystallization pools) made of natural clay that can retain water and natural stones used for compression. Utilizing solar energy and drying hot air winds, the salinity degree of the water reaches 36%, the saturation degree. Subsequently, the crystallization process begins as the solution evaporates during this stage of the process. During the crystallization phase, salt particles form a cubic structure on the surface of the water. The salt with a cubic structure grows in size and weight during the ongoing evaporation stage until it reaches a weight and size where it cannot adhere to the surface of the water, at which point it settles to the bottom of the pool. This process is repeated until at least half of the water in the pool has evaporated. The settled salt particles are then collected at the edges of the pool. The collected salts from the pool are rested for the purpose of draining the water and reducing the moisture content to approximately 2%. The dried salts range in size from 1 mm³ to 18 mm³. Kemah Natural Spring Salt is packaged in weights of 5 kg, 10 kg, and 20 kg without undergoing any grinding process and is stored in warehouses with a minimum moisture content of 5%.