Taiwan Today

The sparkling mineral is the star of a dazzling blue and white theme park.
 

Taiwan’s largest and oldest salt producer, Taiyen Biotech Co., has diversified its business and expanded revenue streams to tap into new customer segments and ensure sustainable growth. Founded as a state-run enterprise in 1952 under the name Taiwan Salt Works in the southern city of Tainan, home of the nation’s salt-making business, it was privatized in 1995 and listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange in 2003. The open house factory model, promoted by the Ministry of Economic Affairs in the early 2000s, helped traditional manufacturers kick-start business transformation by opening their premises to visitors to enhance corporate image.
 

One of the company’s innovative operations is the Taiyen Tongxiao Tourist Park in northern Taiwan’s Miaoli County, which displays both salt and water technology. Its attractions include a salt museum, a water playground, a foot pool, a marble statue of Susha, the legendary figure who first boiled seawater to produce salt, and other outdoor art installations, together with a product display, sales center and a cafe.
 

Taiyen Museum introduces visitors to the process of salt production and the modern technology used today, as well as the different types of industrial and edible salts and their uses and benefits in food, human health and daily life. The facility offers exhibits, hands-on activities and scientific experiments to provide visitors with immersive experiences that enhance the edutainment element. In addition, guided tours of the factory show visitors the production and packaging of salt products and new biotech products such as alkaline ion drinking water.

—by Kelly Her