Salina di Cervia

Cervia Salt Mine and its Sweet Salt

The Cervia Salt Mine is the smallest and northernmost salt mine in Italy. It is located in a nature reserve, in a protected area in the municipality of Cervia.

The Cervia Saline Park Association was founded in 2002, thanks to the determination of the Municipality of Cervia:

  • To oppose the abandonment of the saltworks decided by the state monopolies, which considered them small and uneconomical compared to the Sicilian and Apulian saltworks.
  • To guarantee the ecosystem of the salt flats and to enhance their environmental, ecological and naturalistic aspects.
The salt marshes are made up of 80 ponds surrounded by a 16 km long canal that allows the water from the Adriatic Sea to flow into a dense network of canals; the action of the wind and the sun perform the final miracle of the process, the evaporation of the water that makes the salt "precipitate".

The culture of the salt workers

The salt harvest is traditionally called "cavadura" and takes place in the second half of August.

The salt is harvested by hand, using only a conveyor belt and a trolley. When harvested, the salt is wet and takes on a pink colour due to the presence in the salt ponds of Dunaniella algae, rich in lycopene and beta-carotene.
Once cured on the farm, the salt dries and takes on its typical white colour.

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