A panda research centre in China’s Sichuan Province has found a way to generate revenue… by selling souvenirs made from panda’s dung.
A sales assistant with some souvenirs
made from recycled panda’s shit
Giant pandas’ faeces can be made into paper products (paper, puppets and brush pots etc.) after a recycling treatment that involves cleansing, pulping, whitening and drying. Some paper even bears the scent of fresh bamboo.
According to a researcher from the centre, the idea was inspired by a zoo in Chiang Mai, Thailand, where they recycled manure from pandas and elephants into souvenirs, which are quite popular.
“An adult panda produces about 20 kilograms of dung each day, hence dozens of bamboo-fed pandas in the Chengdu reserve produce up to 200 tonnes of excrement each year,” Huang Xiangming, a senior staff member at the reserve, was quoted as saying. [Crienglish]