Salt Atlas

Inspiration

Salt is universal, but every salt carries a different story of geology, climate, craft, trade, and cuisine. We wanted to make those stories visible through an experience that feels like exploring an old atlas rather than browsing a conventional database.

What it does

Salt Atlas is an interactive world map and evidence-based encyclopedia of more than 300 salts. Users can search and filter by origin, source, production method, and colour; explore detailed culinary profiles; receive transparent recommendations; and follow interactive stories tracing salts from their source to the table or along historic trade routes.

How we built it

We created a structured YAML dataset that compiles into GeoJSON for the map and SQLite for local querying. The frontend is a lightweight bilingual web application with interactive mapping, custom cartographic styling, filters, comparison tools, guided recommendations, and narrative experiences. The site is designed for deployment on Cloudflare Pages, with Cloudflare Functions and D1 supporting community submissions.

Challenges we ran into

Salt names are inconsistent across languages, regions, producers, and commercial labels, making deduplication difficult. Locations also vary from precise salterns to broad geographic areas. We had to balance scientific accuracy, source transparency, map readability, bilingual content, and a visually rich interface without overwhelming the user.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We are proud of turning a large structured dataset into an experience that is both practical and exploratory. Salt Atlas combines more than 300 mapped entries with evidence tracking, culinary guidance, interactive production stories, historic salt roads, recommendation tools, and a distinctive hand-drawn cartographic identity.

What we learned

We learned that food ingredients become far more meaningful when data is connected to place and process. We also learned that uncertainty should be shown rather than hidden: location precision, missing translations, incomplete evidence, and editorial guidance are all communicated directly in the interface.

What's next for Salt Atlas

Next, we plan to expand geographic coverage, add verified photography and deeper multilingual content, and invite experts and producers to improve entries through moderated submissions. We also want to develop richer comparisons, more lifecycle stories, personalized collections, and educational experiences that connect salt with history, ecology, and culinary practice.

Built With

• codex