Salt Farming Heritage Lives On in Samut Sakhon
Traditional salt farming survives in Na Khok subdistrict of Samut Sakhon, where families like Uncle Nong's have practiced the 100-year-old trade despite urban development and low profitability threatening the heritage craft.
Samut Sakhon province was once Thailand's largest salt farming region, with salt ponds stretching from Ga Hlang, Na Khok, Ban Bo, Bang Torat, Khok Kham, and Phan Thay Norsing subdistricts along both sides of Rama II Road to the Samut Songkhram border. Urban expansion gradually encroached on agricultural land, causing salt pond numbers to decline steadily.
However, in Na Khok subdistrict of Muang district—a low-lying area adjacent to the sea—most residents still practice salt farming and shrimp cultivation. Uncle Nong's salt shop on Rama II Road is a well-known establishment. Uncle Nong, or Thanong Petchpum, a salt farmer from Na Khok, revealed that few salt ponds like his remain in Samut Sakhon. His family has carried on the salt farming profession from his grandparents' generation for approximately 100 years. His father had multiple children and divided the land, each receiving 10-20 rai.
However, salt farming on individual plots yields poor returns and is not cost-effective. The current 70-80 rai plot belongs to several siblings who rotate farming duties annually, a system called 'na wer.' Today, many siblings unwilling to continue have sold their shares to Uncle Nong.
"I am the third generation. In the old days, salt farming relied on family labor working together," Uncle Nong explained. "I sent my children to school, so I hired workers instead. With my children's generation, I'm unsure if anyone will continue this profession. Many salt ponds along Rama II Road have been bought by investors who develop them into factories at three million baht per rai. We could get rich by selling our land, but since we're not in financial difficulty, we continue farming salt."
Salt farming is not easy work. Farmers must be curious, observant, and experienced. The process begins with draining seawater into the pond and drying it until reaching the final crystallization stage, requiring approximately 40-50 days to produce salt crystals naturally. If rain falls during harvest, the salt piles prepared for sale dissolve instantly, requiring the farmer to clean the pond and restart the crystallization process. Consequently, Uncle Nong stops salt farming throughout the rainy season.
Typically, the salt farming season runs from November through May of the following year. When preparing his fields, Uncle Nong uses logs or a plow to level and compact the soil, raises field boundaries like dike crests, and creates drainage channels between plots. Salt ponds are divided into five sections: 1) Na Khang or Na Wang (storage ponds); 2) Na Tak, Na Pratiap, or Na Phaen (drying ponds); 3) Na Rong Chue (nursery ponds); 4) Na Dok or Na Chue (seed ponds); and 5) Na Wang, Na Rue, or Na Plong (crystallization ponds).
Each section serves a different function. Na Khang (Wang or Wong Nam) occupies the largest area and sits closest to the seashore for convenient seawater intake. The remaining sections have similar sizes and graduated elevations so water naturally flows from one section to the next without pumping.
The sea salt farming process begins by releasing seawater into the storage pond to allow sediment to settle from the storage pond into the drying pond before entering the evaporation process to increase salinity. When water reaches 3-5 degrees salinity, it is transferred to the nursery pond to reach 15 degrees. It then moves to the seed pond to increase to 20 degrees, and is shuttled between the nursery and seed ponds until reaching 25 degrees salinity, ready for crystallization in the crystallization pond. The farmer leaves the water to allow salt to crystallize into sheets. Once crystallization is complete, salt is harvested using a salt rake and spread. (Content appears incomplete in source)
