Narrative Label

The narrative label is a Slow Food project that tells the story of the product, the people who produce it, and the entire supply chain.

The product

Trapani Sea Salt from the Slow Food Presidium is a whole, unrefined salt, handcrafted and characterized by an intense and persistent flavor. It has a coarser texture than refined salt and may appear slightly moist with a color that is not perfectly white, precisely because it is natural and unprocessed.

The territory

The Culcasi salt pans extend over approximately 13.5 hectares along the Trapani coast, in the area of Nubia, within the municipality of Paceco (TP), inside the Trapani and Paceco Salt Pans Nature Reserve, recognized among the FAI "Places of the Heart".

The landscape offers a unique and evocative scenery of windmills, white salt pyramids, and waters that turn pink as salinity increases. The climate is warm and breezy.

The production

For over 100 years, the Culcasi family has been producing Trapani whole sea salt. Salt formation occurs through the evaporation of seawater which, thanks to a system of channels, primary basins (called fridde) and evaporating basins (caure), reaches maximum salinity in the final crystallization ponds (caseddre), naturally purifying itself from impurities and bacteria.

After about 5 months, typically from May to September, crystallization takes place. A compact salt crust, 10–15 cm thick, forms at the bottom of the ponds and is broken using a traditional tool called “palo”. The salt is then gathered into heaps to allow excess water to drain from the crystals.

Harvesting

From July to September, two harvesting cycles usually take place. The salt is collected using special shovels, placed into steel wheelbarrows and, with the help of a conveyor belt, piled along the edges of the ponds, where it dries naturally under the sun for 7–8 months.

Grinding is carried out using horizontal stainless steel roller mills. The product undergoes no refining processes and no whitening agents or additives are added.