Salt and pepper shakers

Salt and pepper shakers can be made from a variety of materials, including plastic, glass, metal, and ceramic. An 1872 newspaper stated: "A pepper-box for salt is the latest Yankee invention." Salt shakers became increasingly common after anti-caking agents were introduced by the Morton Salt company in 1911. The Great Depression of the 1930s boosted the popularity of salt and pepper shakers as global ceramics producers concentrated on inexpensive items. Design of salt and pepper shakers has also been used to transmit cultural perspectives about race and other cultural values. Two Museums of Salt and Pepper Shakers in the US and Spain are dedicated to showing the variety and history of salt and pepper shakers through the ages. Żupny Castle in Poland also contains a collection of salt shakers. == Distinguishing salt from pepper ==

The number of holes varies by culture, health, and taste. In the United States, where excessive salt is considered unhealthy, salt is stored in the shaker with the fewer holes, but in parts of Europe where pepper was historically a rare spice, this is reversed. In the UK, salt was often poured onto the side of one's plate and used for dipping, rather than shaken across the whole dish, hence salt cellars having a single, larger, hole. The shakers may also be simply labelled "pepper" and "salt" or "p" and "s" (in some cases the latter may be formed of the holes for pouring), or may be colored white for salt and black for pepper. Many salt and pepper shakers are transparent, in which case they need not be otherwise distinguished. As an alternative to salt and pepper shakers, pepper may be distributed at the table by use of a pepper grinder, while salt may be distributed from a salt cellar or a salt mill. == See also ==