Sel of the centuries

Photographer Laurent Geslin visits the salt farms of Brittany, where a harvesting system introduced by Benedictine monks has been used for a millennium to produce the world's finest salt

Renowned for producing some of the world’s finest sea salt, the salt farms of southern Brittany owe their reputation to a system of harvesting introduced by Benedictine monks more than 1,000 years ago. Threatened by tourist development during the 1970s, the salt marshes or marais around Guérande and on Île de Noirmoutier have since been taken over by a cooperative that has introduced these age-old methods to a new generation, ensuring the continuation of this ancient practice into the 21st century.