Mondo Knows Facts

Salt preserves food by drawing out water via osmosis

Dehydrating muscle tissues deprives bacteria of the liquid required for survival

Salting has been used for millennia to preserve meat and fish. Sodium chloride draws water out of microbial cells and food tissues through osmosis, reducing water activity below the threshold required for bacterial growth. Curing also alters muscle proteins, enhancing texture and creating preserved products like prosciutto.

Where this comes from

Food and Agriculture Organization

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Tags: salt, curing, preservation

Salt preserves food by drawing out water via osmosis: the short answers

Where does this come from, and can I check it?
Dehydrating muscle tissues deprives bacteria of the liquid required for survival. The figure is taken from Food and Agriculture Organization, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
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Yes. It sits on the Food shelf, one of 1,090 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.
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