Industrial salt is not difficult to find. It is far more difficult, however, to locate distributors who practice within international guidelines, while providing the industrial salt prices and customer service expected by the consumers of any natural resource.
Firstly, it is always a good idea to determine if your industrial salt vendor is the original manufacturer. There is not a “good” or “bad” to this issue, but there are some advantages and disadvantages for those who are shipping directly from the mine, and distributors who have access to a variety of industrial salt sources.
The Manufacturer Knows Best?
Many manufacturers ship directly to the consumer. Some industrial salt mines and production facilities serve primarily local cities and government needs.
The prices and practices of these facilities are usually policed by local legislation, keeping prices appropriate for use by the public. Other, larger international industrial salt facilities ship to distributors which are better able to manage a global market, and are experienced in providing value to a variety of end-users. While it may seem that eliminating the middle man is a good idea, this is not the case with industrial rock salt.
Some manufacturers of rock salt will claim to ship directly from a particular mine, while actually using private label industrial salt shipping from a distributor. In general, it’s better to begin with a distributor who is familiar with all of the industrial salt facilities available, and is able to find the best prices and industrial salt products.
Industrial salt consumers face all of the complicated issues seen in the consumption of any product demanded on a global level. There are issues all along the value chain, from the safety of salt manufacturing facilities, to the responsible use of industrial salt at home. While there is no reason to get a PhD in chemistry or geology to understand industrial salt, there is every reason to practice some good accounting when choosing a distributor.
Although industrial salt prices are variable, the quality and customer service offered with industrial salt should be relatively consistent. If these are in flux, a new distributor should be found. Industrial salt, like any other product, should be held to national and international standards of quality and purity to ensure not only the safety of the end-user, but the effectiveness of the product itself.
