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There are no less than 40 sites around the Maltese Islands that contain salt pans. The village of Mellieha was named after the salt – Maltese : Melħ - produced in this manner, in Għadira Bay. Not too far away at Salina Bay salt pans used to produce up to two harvests a year with 2,000 tons of coarse salt each harvest. Marsalforn in Gozo has a stretch of one kilometer of different salt pan systems. The Order of the Knights of Saint John held a monopoly over the production of salt in Malta, Gozo and Comino and those who harvested salt without the authorization of the Order would face a heavy penalty. Realising its great potential, the Knights constructed salt pans in Salina Bay and a factory next to them. These salt pans were constructed into sizeable pools separated by walls unlike all others that are to be found excavated into small pans all along the rocky coast line. Around the year 1620, Salina Bay was producing enough salt to supply the islands and export the rest.

Sea water that accumulates naturally in the pans is channelled to others in the vicinity and left to settle for some 8 days. Following that salt is left to settle in smaller pans which are away from the sea waves and warmer in temperature. After a couple of days the water starts to turn into a pink colour and salt crystals will start to appear. Northerly winds tend to dry the water faster, while southerly winds hinder the process.