Paper made from panda poop gets rolling

[Photo: from VCG]

Giant panda reserves in Southwest China said they are cooperating with a paper company to process their piles of fiber-filled panda feces into napkins, tissues and toilet paper.

Sichuan Qianwei Fengsheng Paper Co has struck deals with three bases in Sichuan Province to collect their waste on a weekly basis to mass produce its "panda poo" product line.

"They're taking care of our garbage for us," said Huang Yan, a researcher at the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda (CCRCGP) in Dujiangyan, Sichuan Province.

Huang explained their roly-poly partners pass more than 10 kilograms of excrement a day. While poop is part of the deal, Huang explains most of the recyclable waste comes from the 50 kilograms of bamboo husks pandas produce a day.

"Taking take care of it is rather time-consuming," said Huang.

By digesting the bamboo's sugars and nutrients, pandas are basically extracting their fibers free of charge, explained Yang Chaolin, the company's chairman. 

[The audio clip is from Studio+, produced by CRI] 

(News source: Global Times)