THE ARC-ET-SENANS ROYAL SALTWORKS
The Arc-et-Senans Royal Saltworks were classified as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1982. Its magnificent buildings were designed by Claude-Nicolas Ledoux (1736-1806), visionary architect of the Enlightenment period. Since 1973 the site has been a cultural meeting point with the triple aim of being a museum / heritage site, a venue for cultural events and a place for reflecting on the major challenges of our modern World. Artists and researchers can come to stay all year round and the three-star hotel and bookstore are also open to other visitors. From June to October, a garden festival is held.
THE GREAT SALTWORKS OF SALINS-LES-BAINS
The Great Saltworks of Salins-les-Bains are a UNESCO World Heritage site in the Jura department. From as far back as the 8th century, Salins-les-Bains has benefited from an exceptional gift of nature: salt. The town thus owes its wealth to the winning and evaporation of brine. The Grande Saline in Salins-les-Bains was classified UNESCO World Heritage site in 2009, following the classification of the Arc-et-Senans Royal Saltworks, that provided brine through a ‘brine-duct’, and the Great Saltworks shows the development and the modernisation of an industrial heritage without compare that lasted until 1962.The location is a key symbol of salt production in the Franche-Comté region.
THE BEX SALTMINES
The Bex saltmines allow visitors to discover almost 400 years of history, revealed in the heart of the salt-containing mountain from which this white gold is extracted from the Alps. The objective of the Bex Saltmines is to highlight and enhance their historical and cultural heritage and to preserve these resources for future generations. They are a true custodian of those last Swiss mines still in operation today.
THE SWISS SALT WORKS
The Swiss Salt works are historical salt industry corporations with a mission to provide and supply salt in the long-term for Switzerland on a national scale. The sites in Riburg, Schweizerhalle, and Bex, the “SALINES SUISSES S.A” currently employ 200 staff and produce approximately 600,000 metric tonnes of salt per year. Nearly half of the production is used for ‘gritting’ roads and highways in the winter. The rest of the production fills the requirements and needs of the Swiss population, the Swiss industry, and Swiss trade.