Food factory for China's pandas
Francis Markus. BBC(Shanghai) Monday, 10 November, 2003, 10:37 GMT
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3256761.stm
China has built a biscuit factory to cater exclusively to its
captive giant pandas, giving them a more healthy choice than
the usual steamed bread.
A researcher at a key breeding centre in the south-west of the
country told the BBC the bamboo-shaped biscuits have more fibre
and vitamins.
They have apparently gone down well among the pandas and experts
plan to expand the idea to animals in captivity across the country.
The black and white face of the giant panda has long been a symbol
of China's wildlife, but the estimated 1,000 animals left in the
wild are munching their way through dwindling bamboo reserves.
Finding a nutritious diet for those in captivity has always been
a headache.
Researchers at the Giant Panda Breeding and Research Centre[1] in
the city of Chengdu, say the factory they have set up is baking
long, thin bamboo-shaped biscuits.
They've got more vitamins and more fibre than the steamed bread
that's been a staple up to now, and they've apparently gone down
well with the 40 or so pandas at the centre.
But it remains to be seen if a satisfying dinner will help ease
the pandas' perennial reluctance at the mating game.
[1] http://www.panda.org.cn/english/english.htm
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