Dark Chocolate, sea salt, ooey gooey caramel innards, locally produced, small batch...I never miss a chance to get my hands on a Welsh NomNom bar when the opportunity arises.So, imagine my absolute delight when the opportunity arose as I wandered through the Hey Deli in Hay on Wye, Wales. Now imagine, if at all possible, and even larger delight as I perused the label of my delicious, small batch, NomNom chocolate bar and found a PDO designation on the Anglesey sea salt! Hooray Halen Mon Anglesey Sea Salt!

Halen Mon sea salt comes straight from the sea that surrounds the island of Anglesey in North Wales. Harvesting sea salt was part of Anglesey Island’s heritage until around the 18th century. Halen Mon has in their own way resurrected the process, combining the best of progressive technology and old world tradition. The salt water is passed through a series of natural filters before it is then gently “steamed into a salty brine” where it continues to thicken and dry. The flakes are then hand harvested for the final rinsing process and voila! They make their way into delicious foods like my NomNom chocolate.

So now for the even better part, Halen Mon’s Anglesey Sea Salt was awarded PDO status in January 2014. Well done! They are the first Welsh PDO and let’s cheer the way for more! Protected foods are one of the better ways to preserve food sovereignty. Oh darn, I’m going to have to force myself to buy another bar of chocolate. (: