Most people probably think of salt as some simple white granule in a saltshaker found on virtually every dining table. Countless civilizations have been interwoven with salt as far back as 2070 BC, long before recorded history.

It’s not possible to live a life without any salt which performs a number of basic tasks for the body. The average American normally consumes double the recommended amount. Salt is not an herb or spice; it’s a mineral used for seasoning food (just one among many other uses).

The Egyptians receive credit for being the first to realize the preservation abilities of salt, making it possible to store meats without refrigeration. Through these many millennia salt has not only sustained life but has been used as money, caused bitter warfare, been the subject of fables and fairytales, and played a vital part in religious rituals.

In this country during the Revolutionary War, capturing a salt-making business was an early objective of the British. During the Ci...