00:02Every day workers pack the walls of this mountain with powerful explosives all to
00:11extract one thing Himalayan pink salt. The Khevra mine in Pakistan has the
00:27largest pink salt deposits in the world some of these raw blocks weigh up to 800
00:33kilos too heavy to lift by hand most of the salt ships to Europe and the US where
00:44it is often branded as a healthy product selling for up to 30 times the price of
00:49regular white salt but reports suggest that it has high levels of heavy metals
00:55and microplastics. Still, as the world's appetite for pink salt keeps growing how
01:02is a single mountain range powering this global industry?
01:18Asif Mehmood gets his three sons ready for school every day before heading out to the
01:23mines that hold the covered Himalayan pink salt.
01:45The salt doesn't actually come from the Himalayas which are about 250 kilometers east of here but from the lower
01:53altitude
01:53Potohar plateau in Punjab province. With two decades of experience Asif is now a supervisor responsible for the safety of
02:04the miners.
02:06Inside, about 40 kilometers of tunnels connect 17 levels that are divided into chambers.
02:17First, experienced miners read the walls. They are looking for high quality salt.
02:38After finding the deposits, they start drilling holes about four feet deep and pack them with explosives using just their
02:46bare hands.
02:47A single spark or flame at this point could turn the chamber into an inferno.
02:55Then workers add the fuse wire which snakes through the rock giving them just enough time to clear the area.
03:06Asif moves away to another chamber but he still hears the explosion loud and clear.
03:21After 30 minutes, they cautiously make their way back through the tunnels.
03:48Miners aren't allowed to extract everything. A lot of the rock is used for structural support so the
03:55chambers don't collapse. It takes workers about two hours to load the tractor trolleys, mostly by hand.
04:06Every year, they harvest close to 400,000 tons of salt from the mountain range.
04:12But that's just a fraction of the reserves found here. Even at current extraction rates, this salt is expected to
04:19last for centuries.
04:24The Kevra salt mine is owned by the government, which leases out sections to private companies like Ittifak Salt.
04:35Asif has worked with them since he was 20. The company pays him a salary of about 100,000 rupees
04:42a month or 350 dollars.
04:48That's above the average monthly wage for unskilled workers in this region.
05:03In fact, locals like Asif have depended on the Kevra mine for generations.
05:09Geologists say the salt formed here around 600 million years ago, when ancient seas evaporated, leaving behind thick mineral deposits.
05:20Its signature pink hue comes from trace amounts of iron oxide, the same compound that makes rust red.
05:27The more iron it contains, the deeper the pink, so the salt can range from pale blush to dark red.
05:36Legend says that around 326 BC, during Alexander the Great's expedition to the Indian subcontinent,
05:43his horses uncovered the deposits after they began licking salty rocks along the trail.
05:50But industrial scale mining started here in the 1870s, when the British colonized the region.
05:57Pakistan gained independence in 1947 and took ownership of the salt mines.
06:05But most of the work is done by private companies like Ittifak Salt.
06:12They process the rocks at this factory in Lahore, about 280 kilometers away.
06:18Here, workers like Aamir Aslam start their day by suiting up with protective gear.
06:24We have gloves, we have long gloves, we have cap, and we have goggles.
06:30We keep in touch with them.
06:33First, workers evaluate the raw blocks and sort them by color.
06:37Then they check for any remaining gunpowder and chip it off.
06:42They also scan the rock for natural cracks.
06:46Some pieces can weigh up to a hundred kilos.
06:49So Aamir says they have to be handled with caution.
06:53When I came here at the age of 20 years, I had a little bit of water.
06:56I had a little bit of water.
06:56I had a little bit of water.
06:57I had a little bit of water.
07:01That's why workers cut down the largest slabs first.
07:05But as the size shrinks, their hands get closer to the blade.
07:10And the risk increases.
07:12As the diamond-tipped edge slices through in seconds.
07:19Today, they are working on an order for Himalayan salt lamps.
07:23They drill a hole in the center, which throws up salt fumes.
07:38Over time, those particles can collect in the lungs, making it harder to breathe.
07:49To stay safe, new hires also have to undergo three months of training.
08:03These days, the factory has even automated some parts of the process to increase production.
08:09It can now handle nearly 350 metric tons of salt a day.
08:15The weight of a fully loaded Boeing 747 jumbo jet.
08:20And demand has only been skyrocketing over the years.
08:24For everything from bath salts to lamps used in aromatherapy and edible salt.
08:30The finished products are stacked, wrapped, boxed, labeled, and shipped around the world to more than 80 countries.
08:39In some U.S. grocery stores, a container of Himalayan pink salt sells for about $10.
08:45But a much larger jar of regular table salt can cost just $1.
08:51It's often more costly because of how it's branded, as a more natural and healthier alternative to regular table salt.
08:59Influencers claim it can regulate blood sugar, improve sleep, and detoxify the body.
09:05But scientists say there's no solid evidence behind those claims.
09:09In fact, one recent study shows that Himalayan pink salt contains higher amounts of microplastics than other rock salts,
09:19with the contamination happening at the processing and packaging stage.
09:23Other reports show that it contains heavy metals like lead, mercury, and arsenic that can be toxic even in small
09:32quantities.
09:32I made a shocking discovery about pink Himalayan salt.
09:37On top of that, there are also many fake products out there that add pink dye to regular salt and
09:44sell it at premium prices.
09:47It looks like foundation that I can put on my face.
09:51Still, the people who work with this salt continue to believe in those healing properties.
10:07Since 2018, the global market for Himalayan salt has grown steadily and is expected to reach almost 700 million in
10:172030.
10:19But Pakistan's annual exports are valued at only a fraction of that.
10:24That's because most of the profits in this industry are made later in the supply chain,
10:30when the salt is turned into products.
10:32And for years, Pakistan wasn't actually doing that.
10:37It lacked the equipment to grind and refine it to international standards.
10:41So exporting raw salt became an easier option.
10:45Most of it was shipped at low prices to India,
10:49where it was processed and sold to Western markets as a premium product,
10:54sometimes even labeled as made in India.
10:58Pakistan saw little of the profit.
11:03But in 2019, political tensions between the two countries escalated over control of the Kashmir region.
11:10Pakistan suspended bilateral trade with India, cutting off a major export route for raw salt.
11:18So local companies started processing the salt themselves.
11:22But those early workshops weren't as modern or safe as they are today.
11:30We filmed at one six years ago.
11:33There, we saw some workers handling the same sharp equipment without gloves.
11:38Fine salt fumes filled the air, coating the machines, the floors, and even the workers' faces.
11:46Not many of them wore masks.
11:49Despite the risks, many workers still value this job.
11:57Because Khevra isn't just a salt mine.
12:00It's a national attraction.
12:03Bringing in about 250,000 tourists every year.
12:09A source of pride for many who work in the industry.
12:27Meanwhile at the mine, Asif's eight-hour shift is finally over.
12:33work. So he bonds with co-workers over a cup of tea and a melancholy song.
12:50But his spirits are anything but defeated. Tomorrow, he looks forward to another day
12:56inside this mine.
13:01I get to learn new things here. It's an adventure. I enjoy it.
13:12Our gullabi Himalayan pink salt is being used in the whole world.
13:21I'm happy that I'm a part of this team. I'm a part of Pakistan.
13:26I'm a part of Pakistan.
13:29I'm a part of Pakistan.
13:42I'm a part of Pakistan.
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