Mon State’s salt output exceeded domestic consumption, so the Department of Consumer Affairs is endeavouring to penetrate foreign markets beyond self-sufficiency.
Salt production season begins around December, halts in April, sometimes due to heavy rain and ends in May. Salt farming businesses are found in Thanbyuzayat, Ye and Paung townships in Mon State.
Salt from Mon State is distributed to Mon State, Kayin State, Taninthayi Region and Mandalay Region. Salt export will help create jobs for locals and generate foreign earnings.
There were foreign purchase proposals for coarse salt produced by Mon State in previous years.
Myanmar signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in the last week of September 2022 with a company from the Republic of Korea for the exportation of sun-dried coarse salt from Mon State, and a container loaded with 20 tonnes of salt was exported to ROK on a trial basis. Efforts are being undertaken to place orders in more markets.
Twenty tonnes of coarse salt from Thanbyuzayat Township, Mon State, were exported to Japan on a trial basis in August 2022 as well.
Mon State, the second largest producer in Myanmar, produces over 40,000 tonnes of sun-dried salt yearly, including magnesium chloride (MgCl2), iodized salt (I2) and table salt (NaCl). There are 12 fine and coarse salt processing factories in the state.
In the 2023-2024 salt production season, there were 90 salt producers in Mon State, covering 4,700 acres. The salt output was expected to reach 47,000 tonnes, yet heavy rainfall reduced the yield to 45,000 tonnes. — NN/KK
