HIMALAYAN salt on sale in various shops in Panama and appearing on restaurant tables, has been declared unfit for human consumption for breaching sanitary standards.
The message comes from the health inspection authority (Aupsa)The reasons were the lack of iodine and other irregularities which led to the seizure of the product, which has a distinctive pink color.
A March 2001 decree establishes that all salt intended for human consumption must be fortified with iodine, said Aupsa administrator Yuri Huerta.
Huerta said that the salt had entered into the country as a raw material, and was then  repackaged.
Sellers could face fines of up to $25,000.