Workers collect salt from the fields ready to store it in warehouses in Kampot province. Post Staff.
Rainfall during the months of March and April has significantly reduced salt yields in Kampot and Kep so far this year. Bun Narin, president of the Association of Geographical Indication Kampot and Kep Salt Producers, noted that just over 30,000 tonnes has been produced.
He explained that weather conditions disrupted production from the end of the first quarter through April. However, he assured the public that the low production this year would not cause any major issues because around 50,000 tonnes of salt from the 2024 harvest remain in storage.
This year so far, we only produced slightly over 30,000 tonnes, but since we still have about 50,000 tonnes in storage from last year, we can manage. On average, Cambodia consumes about 70,000 to 80,000 tonnes annually,” he said.
According to Narin, in March, the price of Kampot and Kep salt ranged from 5,500 to 6,000 riel per 50-kilogramme sack. However, prices have now increased to between 9,000 and 11,000 riel per sack due to the end of the salt harvesting season. Typically, the season runs from January to April each year, but in years with hotter and drier weather, it can extend until June.
Currently, the GI Salt Producers Association of Kampot and Kep consists of 13 producer groups and 4 salt processing companies, along with about 150 household businesses. The association is in the process of forming a new community group, with various government institutions currently reviewing the proposal.
Minister of Industry, Science, Technology and Innovation Hem Vanndy reported in February that the Kingdom has two salt production areas which cover nearly 4,000 hectares — 3,489 hectares in Kampot province and 497 hectares in Kep province.
The minister said Cambodia produced around 168,000 tonnes of salt in 2024, marking a significant increase over the past five years. The Kingdom produced over 96,000 tonnes in 2020, more than 75,000 tonnes in 2021, nearly 33,000 tonnes in 2022 and over 81,000 tonnes in 2023. The rise in production in 2024 was attributed to favourable weather conditions, which also meant Cambodia did not need to import salt from abroad.
