(ABC 6 News) — “Hold the salt” is the new mantra for Minnesota road crews treating streets and highways.

According to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, the state uses more than 400,000 tons of road salt every year, and now, two teams of Minnesota researchers are looking into alternatives.

These potential alternatives include potassium acetate, a chemical made with vinegar used to de-ice airplane wings.

“What’s different is because it’s organic, it will naturally bio-degrade, and break down in the environment,” said U of M Research Manager Andy Erickson.

However, the $6-8 per gallon compared to the 50 cents per gallon for salt makes it impractical.

The teams are also looking into a salt and brine mixture.

One test, we reduced our total salt amount by 30% Got the road cleared faster by about thirty percent,” said MnDOT State Maintenance Engineer Jed Falgren.

MnDOT engineers say a mix of salt and brine could be the winning formula. In recent years, they’ve used 15 million gallons of it.