Why France's Most Expensive Salt Costs 230 Times More Than Table Salt

Why France's Most Expensive Salt Costs 230 Times More Than Table Salt | Insider Business

Рет қаралды 659,095

8 ай бұрын

Fleur de sel is a rare, unrefined salt made in western France by evaporating seawater slowly in 2-centimeter-deep ponds. Fleur de sel is a salt that dissolves slowly, so its taste lingers in the mouth. But just about every step of the process to get this salt is difficult. Before harvesting, the wind has to be perfect. And during the harvest, salt producers need to be ready to collect the precious salt at any moment, or they won't make a profit. Even if they seize the right moment, the salt has to dry for an entire year before it can be sold. In France it costs 230 times the price of table salt, and can sell for $420 per kilogram in the US. So, is it always worth it to produce fleur de sel? And why is it so expensive?
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Why French Fleur De Sel Salt Is So Expensive | So Expensive | Insider Business

Пікірлер: 491

@superkas 8 ай бұрын

What makes it expensive are simply because it's involving a manual labour in a develped country.

@shingon666 8 ай бұрын

yup, "himalayan" pakistani salt requires as much labor and it's just as rare, but they can get away with paying the miners like $2 usd a month.

@erzsebetkovacs2527 8 ай бұрын

Plus storage for a year after harvesting and before selling it.

@tulusprasetia1758 8 ай бұрын

Just look at that guy's salt harvesting outfit.

@GarC170 8 ай бұрын

In the US that’s the only kind of cheap labor there is

@incyphe 8 ай бұрын

fancy can and packaging too.

@swiftwella 8 ай бұрын

Exactly the same thing is done in Aveiro, Portugal and Algarve, Portugal (there might be more). It's even called the same thing, but in Portuguese - "Flor de Sal". But instead of $420 per kg, it's usually around $6 to $10.

@juju-od3qx 8 ай бұрын

i'm french and i don't know how can they say $420, it's 20€ per kg in supermarket

@cummerou1 8 ай бұрын

@@juju-od3qx 420 dollars is abroad, and the video shows a small glass jar of like 50-100 grams, so if they can sell 50 grams for 21 dollars or 100 grams for 42 dollars at some super expensive health store in Los Angles or something, then it costs "up to" 420 dollars per kg

@soothingmoments2139 8 ай бұрын

I guess business insider is just as bad as the people who marked up the price ..they know the price is inflated up ridiculously..yet they just take it as the truth and report it as such...its just sea salt ..that tastes salty

@tslee8236 8 ай бұрын

@@juju-od3qxThe same way free springwater can be sold for a dollar or two in a bottle.

@ThunderRice 8 ай бұрын

@@cummerou1 in Quebec we pay like $9 CAD for 125g, so that's $72 CAD for one kg. One of the boxes I saw says it was handpicked too...

@Ass_of_Amalek 8 ай бұрын

this channel has taught me that in france, food products cost extra when the producers don't wear gloves.

@VroomTech 8 ай бұрын

cuz french people think they are so pure and fancy, they have the worst language, sounds like someone trying to use mouthwash and they know it, so they have to charge 100X the price for common stuff

@turbopower7308 8 ай бұрын

They use their hands instead of toilet tissue 💀

@beckham4543 8 ай бұрын

Vice versa with India 🇮🇳

@MM-24 7 ай бұрын

where else could we get such connection to nature!?

@maxime3648 7 ай бұрын

@@turbopower7308no we don"t

@DoingItOurselvesOfficial 8 ай бұрын

I live a few hours drive from this place. I use this salt all the time. It’s not expensive if you buy it from the place. Definitely the best salt I’ve ever tasted. I believe it’s called Celtic salt in the states.

@balls9420 8 ай бұрын

I wonder why. Cause only one French region that is Celtic. Brittainy.

@Syrkyth 8 ай бұрын

@@balls9420 The Celtic peoples existed all over Central Europe, all of the British isles and even down into the Anatolian and Iberian peninsulas. A really wide ranging cultural group.

@balls9420 8 ай бұрын

@@Syrkyth I'm talking about surviving Celtic regions. Of course they were across most of Europe. They are the natives of most of Europe.

@RhiannonSenpai 8 ай бұрын

@@Syrkyth The Celts settled in Europe as far as western Romania, search on wikipedia "Celts in Western Romania".

@cleverusername9369 5 ай бұрын

@@balls9420I believe you'll find it's spelled Brittany, or Bretagne in French.

@kkyle53 8 ай бұрын

Subtitle mistake at 3:01, he doesn't say that it is a role of patience, he say it's a role of passion.

@Ass_of_Amalek 8 ай бұрын

they defrenched him! honhonhon 🤬

@yosie89 8 ай бұрын

there's also an error when he talk the moist content of dried salts. He said "6 to 8%"(6 à 8%) and they wrote "6, 7 or 8%".

@jpalz 8 ай бұрын

whats the difference@@yosie89

@ReturnOfMonke 5 ай бұрын

I will never not love hearing people talk about their work with the kind of pride that this man does.

@garochompo5454 8 ай бұрын

dudes workin in sneakers, jeans and shirt, truely a french citizen. Even at work he doesnt neglect his style.

@GenJuhru 8 ай бұрын

Workmen's clothes? *_Sacrebleu!_*

@user-bi8ko7kc6h 8 ай бұрын

It’s the French buff. Lots of undeveloped areas are using similar way to make salt but earn like a dollar a day. 😅 Advertising, collab with chiefs, fancy packaging, labour intensive work in a developed country make it expensive.

@f1f1s 8 ай бұрын

So... should developed countries stop doing things like farming, woodworking, or salt collection if it is cheaper in other countries?

@user-ku9rm2pi1b 8 ай бұрын

I would like to watch a reaction video of other salt producers watching this one ... listening to how he describes the differences in salt and how much they sell for. Offhand i think ive seen versions from japan, korea, indonesia, phillipines.

@zulfadhlihakim-jo9xj 8 ай бұрын

yup...bamboo salt or volcanic sand salt much more interesting for me

@user-fw9wb3lh7z 8 ай бұрын

한국에는 대나무소금도 있지만 영상같은 염전도 존재하는데 염전노예를 사용하기때문에 가격이 아주 저렴하다 생산지역에 가까이가면 노예로 잡혀간다

@roberthousedorfii1743 8 ай бұрын

Yeah, this just a bunch of marketing spiel. Are there differences? Sure Are most people gonna know? NOPE. Still, the coarse french salt vs the real fine does make a difference in the final taste. Just not 400 bucks/euros worth!

@MrJTL19 8 ай бұрын

yeah.. asian contries' salts were far more better than what they produce, people should not always think that because its from a "european country" or from "america" is its instantly a "premium quality" grade. smh

@AngryBird000 7 ай бұрын

@@MrJTL19 somehow I feel like it is the opposite

@potatomatop9326 8 ай бұрын

Sprinkle 3 grains of Fleur De Sel Salt on a McDonald's fries in front of a customer and you can charge that person $6,000 for the fries.

@loanokaharbor8303 8 ай бұрын

Fleur de fries 🍟 💸 💰

@raffyl2112 8 ай бұрын

@@loanokaharbor8303 Sprinkle salt on the soft serve ice cream and call it McFleury

@mastersplinter5966 8 ай бұрын

lol@@loanokaharbor8303

@GenJuhru 8 ай бұрын

French-ier Fries

@wiz3kid 8 ай бұрын

Haven't tried fleur de sel, but the clay salt, sold as atlantic sea salt, truly tastes much better than plain salt (it has a different unique taste) and not that expensive. It's more coarse and has more humidity. This salt is not meant to replace regular use of salt mixed in cooking, it only makes sense sprinkled over a finished plate.

@charyog7 8 ай бұрын

If you like trying these kind of different salt, I much recommend fleur de sel, it's very nice! It's expensive per kg, but we never use that much salt, a small box can last you easily for a year for a family. Sprinkled on top of a steak or a salmon, it's perfect 👌

@AlexanderTheGreat91 5 ай бұрын

What do you mean by humidity?

@wiz3kid 5 ай бұрын

@@AlexanderTheGreat91 It's more sticky and not like a dry powder

@beverlylargent5580 2 ай бұрын

I switched from table salt to the Himalayan salt. It's really good on everything!

@blippityblop2767 8 ай бұрын

I love this series because they tell you exactly why it’s so expensive and then ask the question “what makes it so expensive” I’m guessing it’s so expensive because of everything you just said.

@sWardSer 3 ай бұрын

Mf really thinks that salt can get 230 times more expensive because it dissolves a bit slower and has a crunch instead of the worker not coming from a third world country

@Lastburn 8 ай бұрын

Funny thing is that this is perfectly replicable with a pressure vessel and ordinary salt but no one would buy it that way

@Anaesify 8 ай бұрын

good luck pressurizing this volume of water at an industrial scale for the same price as nature is doing it here

@wiz3kid 8 ай бұрын

Only the texture might be replicable but ordinary salt does not contain a significant amount of minerals and impurities besides sodium chloride, which makes it just salty, without the extra unique flavor.

@curlyhairdudeify 8 ай бұрын

So are you also going to replicate the minerals in the water, and mud.

@alitharealist4730 8 ай бұрын

@@curlyhairdudeify Sure can.. How do u think they make Alkaline water lol they infuse active minerals with the water anything is possible. But morons rather spend trillions on war that's coming out of the people's pockets taxing everything when a fraction of that money can be used to stop cutting corners in farming or over priced bs as if extracting that salt is such hard job lol. Dude just comes and sweeps it with a broom thing.. im sure 99% of people can sweep some salt above the water lol but no lets stick with gmo farming and move away from organic better for the earth farming.. Keep cutting corners.

@ReySchultz121 8 ай бұрын

I'm sensing clone meat levels of work here.

@unusualplants2162 8 ай бұрын

In India this method of salt extraction is being used for thousands of years n now these salts doesn't cost more than $1 for 5 kgs

@dikshantbali3529 8 ай бұрын

Its funny how they justify just about everything by attaching a higher price tag

@dekkel_ 8 ай бұрын

It’s the white-supremacy of it all. If it’s made by hand in France or Spain or Italy, it’s ~boutique~ but the same process in colonized countries is “unrefined” or “backwards” and “unsanitary”.

@unusualplants2162 8 ай бұрын

@@dikshantbali3529 especially the Japanese in this matter.

@Smoochy1074 8 ай бұрын

It's because we value our labor unlike your third world country lmao

@Ass_of_Amalek 8 ай бұрын

in india, it costs extra if the producers wear gloves. in france, it costs extra if they don't.

@inheritedwheel2900 8 ай бұрын

very well spoken worker, great commentary!

@betsyrocks 8 ай бұрын

I love using Fleur De Sel (not this guys brand). People think I'm crazy spending money on expensive salt but it really boosts your cooking as a finishing salt.

@draco_1244 8 ай бұрын

is it just me or insiders videos comfort me???????

@finfan83 8 ай бұрын

really interesting, did know the standard evaporating pools, but not about harvesting of the fleur de sel from the water only.

@bifouy5372 8 ай бұрын

One benefit of maintaining that harverting method is also the conservation of the landscape in the region.

@thethunderfox1981 Ай бұрын

When I went to Portugal, we went to a producer of this salt and they were selling it for 10-15$ per kilo. They built their factory right in the middle of their salt pans, so you can see where it comes from. It’s also artisanally made.

@amuthi1 8 ай бұрын

I use it in cookies (with a high fat ratio) where I don't want to have the flavour of salt dissolved evenly into the dough.

@amandaellison9706 7 ай бұрын

So amazing. I love how his eyes light up

@sparkyheberling6115 8 ай бұрын

I give Fleur de sel as gifts. Until people try it, they don't believe that a finishing salt can make a difference.

@ManabiLT 8 ай бұрын

If I could cook more (I'm disabled, so it's really hard), I'd _love_ to try out that smoked salt. Sounds like it would add a nice smoked flavor to things without a bunch of nitrates and nitrites that make my IBS flare up.

@surrealist1976 8 ай бұрын

every salt "farmer" says their salt is nothing like others

@aadammohiuddin6844 7 ай бұрын

If anyone wants to try this, costco sells butter cookies with this salt on them. They just taste like a stronger salt taste

@jaungiga 8 ай бұрын

8:48 "There are a lot of people who say salt isn't good for your health. But it's not salt that's bad for your health. It's bad salt that's bad for you." Absolutely no. It's the amount of salt you eat that's bad for you. You need sodium to survive and to function normally, since sodium plays a central role in the way our nervous system works but no matter the quality of salt you're consuming, all of them have sodium chloride and if you eat too much of it, it'll most likely impact your cardiovascular health

@SimonSozzi7258 8 ай бұрын

I don't understand why people are so upset. It doesn't make your salt any more expensive and you don't have to buy it or try it. It's a business and he's doing it right.

@wavnino1 7 ай бұрын

The different varieties of salt are distinguished by the types of wind that day? thats an impressive. It just shows how dedicated he is to his craft. I've had Fleur de sel and nothing I've had compares to it!

@elvenkind6072 7 ай бұрын

Did it taste salty?

@Andla_2806 8 ай бұрын

In Chile, there is a place where they "harvest" salt, it's called Cahuil -near Pichilemu, the surfing venue.

@WastrelWay 8 ай бұрын

When I was a kid, they had "salt ponds" like this in San Francisco Bay near the Dumbarton Bridge. They are now part of a wildlife refuge and I suppose they don't harvest salt there anymore.

@bryantretheway3809 8 ай бұрын

Probably the best show in an excellent series.

@Aaron.Monroe 8 ай бұрын

Surprised this channel has never covered Qiviut since it’s finer than cashmere and the most insulating natural fabric.

@Nicholas.Tsagkos 8 ай бұрын

Messolongi in Greece also produce flower of salt.

@jimlawton4184 2 ай бұрын

One of the things I love about French apart from how beautiful it sounds, is that once in a while you’ll get an English word thrown in there like how he says ‘crunnnchy’ just before 8min 😹

@prodigy227 7 ай бұрын

Wonderful!

@audreybossman8369 5 ай бұрын

This stuff is freaking delicious! It took about 7 tries to nail it, but I just make it in my kitchen with the large pebble sea salt, a hot plate, and a pyrex dish. My biggest pyramid shaped crystals are about 2 cm wide at the base and a cm tall.

@larsl997 8 ай бұрын

I was just on holiday in Batz sur mer and you can buy fleur de sel on the side of the road, straight from the paludiers for 25€/kg

@max_208 4 ай бұрын

Yeah they are straight up lying, Fleur de sel isn't as expensive as they make it to be, it's at most twice the price of table salt

@ZebbMassiv 5 ай бұрын

Just bought some. It was on sale tor only $10 per 125 grams. Makes my George Foreman steaks taste extra fancy.

@midasgold4223 8 ай бұрын

It is not really just the technique, salt from different waters, rock taste different. It is not table salt or kosher salt. Until one try it, one cannot really say they are all the same. Also, these kind of salts are more as a garnish which enhance the taste of some delicate food. But if you eat fastfood, deepfried food or curry only, your tastebud will have been so saturated with heavy stuff that you will not be able to tell the difference.

@SmokedOutJ 24 күн бұрын

I would be shocked if it didn’t cost more than that you’re in France 🇫🇷 😅culinary hotspot of the world

@khiahahaha 7 ай бұрын

You know, having had himalayan salt...i really cant judge until i tried it. It must taste amazing. There is Just something that makes it sought after. I still like my local sea salt but sometimes there is a delicate profile to these things that make it more palatable

@mackenzieonyx7586 5 ай бұрын

I loved this production! Wow this guy really knows his stuff!! I truly admire the expertise hes gained from his devotion and persistence. a nice reminder that hard work does indeed pay off. 😊 i especially took a liking to his chemical breakdowns of the salts, minerals and their environment. truly someone who has honed the varying aspects of their craft. now.. if i heard right.. one of these salts was 23 euros for 100grams.. sign me up!!! im do excited to try this! 😊

@0NicoLoco0 4 ай бұрын

Mate, you are too excited for fuckin' salt.

@fryode 8 ай бұрын

Smoked Salt sounds like it would be amazing.

@helenbailey8419 8 ай бұрын

Sounds like a good life style choice.

@maotsetung243 8 ай бұрын

this salt makes humans immortal

@ArthurvanH0udt 5 ай бұрын

I always buy it near Camargue park. On east side there’s a huge fleur de sel “park” also making this type of salt.

@cloverhighfive 8 ай бұрын

Did the editors like Cédric dumping white salt on a white table while we're supposed to see the difference between the salts? LOL

@apokalypthoapokalypsys9573 4 ай бұрын

Sodium chloride is sodium chloride. Chemistry doesn't lie. The only thing that can cause a difference in taste is impurities in the salt. But the salt itself IS the same.

@JohnHausser 8 ай бұрын

You’re not a real 🥩 lover until you season it with this salt

@ilmelangolo 8 ай бұрын

also good on a chocolate cake

@DietBajaBlast 8 ай бұрын

gate keeping steak

@raykane2063 8 ай бұрын

And some bed bugs

@johansjournal 8 ай бұрын

imagine paying all this money for salt lmao

@stefanfilipov7254 8 ай бұрын

There were times when salt was worth more than gold....

@faesarn 8 ай бұрын

There are people that pay such prices for water too when the tap water is perfectly fine...

@raykane2063 8 ай бұрын

With Bed Bugs

@seroslav6934 8 ай бұрын

Watching all these films makes me conclude that salt is the most expensive thing on Earth

@archingelus 8 ай бұрын

What's your salary?

@530horace 8 ай бұрын

Can anyone who've tried both tell me, what's the difference (if any) between fleur de sel and Maldon Salt, taste wise?

@modash1231 8 ай бұрын

Maldon is flakier with bigger “sheets” that is comparable for the most coarse varieties of fleur de sel. The finer versions of fleur de sel can be comparable to coarser versions of kosher salt. It’s all along a spectrum of salt/surface area/moisture content/mineral content

@defeatSpace 4 ай бұрын

Manufacturers have been synthesizing table-salt for over one hundred years to provide uniform distributions of any preferential granule size, and they probably still mine the salt ingredients.

@alex-ti3hf 8 ай бұрын

Never heard so much fuss about table salt. But if you can convince your customers to overpay...good sales tactic !

@lachevremagnifique7664 4 ай бұрын

Funny to see you proud of being ignorant

@smoll8746 8 ай бұрын

He should try mesquite, hickory or applewood saw dust.

@nzanthung5612 8 ай бұрын

The reason it's so expensive is because people are willing to pay for it...

@ecltitox4510 8 ай бұрын

i'm french i swear i have like 250g of it bougt directly to the producer at 10euros

@juliusbernotas 8 ай бұрын

Maldon salt flakes cost like 3 eur for 125g box where i live - and that is already an expensive premium product. Nope, not paying 20 eur for that little jar - in the end any salt is the same old sodium chloride.

@beverlylumley4150 8 ай бұрын

Fascinating occupation

@27.minhquangvo76 7 ай бұрын

I mean, aside from this top-grade fleur de sel, does this farm produce salt for lower-level culinary uses and/or industrial uses?

@squirrelnibbler19 8 ай бұрын

We’ve got these salt ponds in Mountain View CA, but not sure anyone would eat it…..😳

@Dancerlil 8 ай бұрын

I live in Milpitas Ca. It wouldn't appeal to me to eat the salt from this area as it is just to polluted in my opinion.

@naroyubi 8 ай бұрын

I swear this is the 10th different kind of expensive salt ive seen here

@naomifourie9016 8 ай бұрын

This is so amazing, someone putting such effort into producing perfect salt

@user-wo5ii3he6s 8 ай бұрын

by "such" you mean "precisely zero" right? Because that's what happening.

@malkavian8952 8 ай бұрын

The salt may be expensive, but at least you get the microplastics from the sea water for free!😄

@sChick-vy3vi 3 ай бұрын

I use Mexican Spring Salt which is made using the exact same method.

@user-ub3je5ie5h 4 ай бұрын

Me gusta todo lo q enseñan en estos videos

@melodyparra2960 8 ай бұрын

Out of all the salts created in the world, which is the most expensive, and which is the most rare

@sobhansyed4482 8 ай бұрын

They made a video on some 9x black bamboo salt or something like that and said that was the most expensive

@kermm03 4 ай бұрын

anyone else salivating during watching lol

@chelseamckee4971 7 ай бұрын

So I googled the average yearly temperatures for France, and I'd like to say Y'all's high heat of 78 is a cool breeze to us. 🤠

@johndrowned7170 24 күн бұрын

This Guy did an Irl Stardew Valley , he seems to be happy

@Gr3kiZon3 8 ай бұрын

The price is mostly due to proper (national) marketing. Same with wine.

@lachevremagnifique7664 4 ай бұрын

Probably the most disastrous take I heard in a while ! My dude please don't talk about wine. You are clearly not worthy

@Gr3kiZon3 4 ай бұрын

@@lachevremagnifique7664 got to love all these anonymous internet know-it-alls.

@fall22123 8 ай бұрын

I would bet the average person couldn't tell the difference between this and regular table salt.

@thelec47 8 ай бұрын

that's my place !!

@radhikas6106 7 ай бұрын

Who knew we can learn so much from salt

@Dhananjuly 8 ай бұрын

Nice 👍

@mashali-ep5rj Ай бұрын

This channel has taught me that french goods are a scam lol. Only exception is the butter guy

@kingjoe3rd 7 ай бұрын

Only the French could act like a special salt exists and overpay for it.

@prabhushankar8520 8 ай бұрын

Good 👍😊

@blazingfireyt Ай бұрын

It's not the Salt, it's the story behind it that makes this Salt expensive. I mean you can sell anything online and make millions of dollars as long as there's a good and convincing cover story behind it.

@alexandrudumitrascu5339 3 ай бұрын

At 8:50 the chemistry left the video. An excess of sodium is dangerous, it doesn't depend from where it comes

@AD-jq7ow 8 ай бұрын

Well you can have fleur de sel in any salines it's doesn't have to be french...

@jokjoan 5 ай бұрын

Salt is 0.40 usd per kilo here.

@marcusm8009 8 ай бұрын

Seems like it would pair well with desalinization. Brine water is a problem until you turn it into a product.

@DavidCruickshank 2 ай бұрын

"There are a lot of people who say salt isn't good for your health. But it's not salt that's bad for your health. It's bad salt that's bad for you." I'm fairly certain that excessive sodium consumption is bad for you regardless of whether a french guy has fondled the salt or not.

@militant_daisies2194 7 ай бұрын

this french dude has life figured out.

@jh3328 8 ай бұрын

Next on Business Insider: why is everything so expensive?

@johnyoung2702 Ай бұрын

Your kidneys wondering how much that salt must have cost.

@Antler-bd1yu 4 ай бұрын

It's around 20/25 euros per kilo retail price.

@deepwaters2334 5 ай бұрын

I could make this myself in a pot of boiling salt and water. I am not paying $420/kg for this science project

@andrewtestin9080 5 ай бұрын

Hard working man

@Bobsk3 8 ай бұрын

Look at this guy, harvesting salt in his best clothes… 😶

@TheSongwritingCat 7 ай бұрын

Without Insider, I would know so much less about salt 🙃

@coralboy5809 Ай бұрын

In our country this sea salt price 3kg 1 dollar.

@d.feldman 8 ай бұрын

You'll never understand the worth of fleur de sel until you've tasted it. Perfect with steak tartare, dark chocolate bars, and some other items.

@MessyPointedBlob 4 ай бұрын

Mmmmm microplastic salt.

@haltarys 8 ай бұрын

The narrator does a great job at pronouncing the French terms !

@q_ayyah 8 ай бұрын

Thank you!

@arethas1387 8 ай бұрын

@@q_ayyah what is it actually you?

@q_ayyah 8 ай бұрын

@@arethas1387 yes!

@ilmelangolo 8 ай бұрын

Bello

@GPutraJayawardana 5 ай бұрын

Isn't that normal traditional salt production many country?

@ioanbota9397 8 ай бұрын

I like this video

@xynurse6095 8 ай бұрын

Wait so it's just evaporated sea water salt? Why not take the seawater pump it into a building with shallow pools? Much lower sand contamination and you can control the winds via fans.