According to the United Nations, about a quarter of the world's urban dwellers live in slums, and this number is increasing day by day. As one of the most densely populated cities in the world and one of the most difficult places to live, Manila is a prime example of this global problem.
Manila is the port city and economic center of the Philippines, home to more than half of the country's businesses. Every day, countless transactions take place here, and thousands of dollars flow through the hands of people.
Slums of Manila
On the fringes of the city, however, a group of poor people who have nothing to do with economic prosperity can only live in slums, looking for a livelihood in the garbage heap to feed their families. Among them, the most commercially valuable is the scrap of waste used by urban people, which is a popular staple food on the table of the poor.
The poor call this recycled meat "Pagpag."
"Pagpag" on sale
"Pagpag" means dust from clothes or carpets in Filipino, and now it has another meaning, leftover meat rummaging through garbage heaps.
The poor here recycle the leftover meat, cook it at high temperatures, and then eat it themselves, and also sell it to other poor people.
In Manila's slums, recycled meat has formed an industrial chain from finding, buying, cooking to selling, and it is a fiercely competitive business.
Arnold riding a tricycle with his family
On the way to recycle waste meat
Arnold has 9 children. In order to run a business of recycling meat, their family specially purchased a tricycle.
In order to reduce costs and increase profits, the whole family goes to manila restaurants every day to pick up recycled meat. Every night, when most Manilaians finish their day's work and return home to rest, Arnold's family has to go out. They had to leave 4 hours before the restaurant closed so they could pick up the best recycled meat.
The endless stream of cars sped past them, leaving the family in a hurry. Over the past few years, Manila's dark back alleys have seen their humble figures waiting for restaurants to close.
Arnold
Because I know the staff at the hotel, we can collect scrap meat from there.
It's not just dirty and smelly to pick up recycled meat, because of the fierce competition, many poor people have to stay up all night, even before the garbage truck arrives at the scene in the early morning. In this way, it can stand out among many competitors and grab the best, most and freshest recycled meat.
Piles of garbage are mixed with kitchen waste from fast food restaurants or certain households. Some fried chicken that has only eaten a few bites, or bones with a little meat stuck to it, are treasures that scavengers are competing for.
It was close to late at night. A few hours later, arnold's family picked up buckets full of recycled meat.
Usually, Arnold would first pick out the leftover meat from the bones and other debris and simply wash it.
Junwei Moderator
When I followed Arno into his house, I was shocked, it was both the living room and the kitchen, but how could it be so dirty; Debris, garbage, dust, and flies are particularly abundant. It just so happens that "Pagpag" means dust again. Is this where food is recycled, where it's prepared? It really made me unbelievable!
This simple sorting of recycled meat cannot yet be sold directly, it is subject to additional seasoning and cooking.
Arnold hired Felipe, 48, as a chef who specializes in cooking recycled meat, and Felipe re-cooked some of the best recycled meat for them, then sold it for profit.
Junwei Moderator
When I picked it up, I smelled a little sour taste in the pot of chicken, which was actually not very good, but now after adding seasoning, the taste has completely changed, although it doesn't sell well. The color and texture of the meat are like the chicken we usually eat, but in fact, it is quite like the taste of marinated meat.
Although the hygiene level of recycled meat has been questioned, it has not prevented it from becoming one of the most popular delicacies in the slums, and many people are already waiting in front of stalls before it is sold.
The "Pagpag" in small packets sells for 5 pesos, the middle package is 10 pesos, and the large package is 20 pesos.
After a day's toil, Felipe was paid about 25 yuan, almost double the income of ordinary poor people.
Felipe
I don't think it's enough to improve my life, but most importantly, we can at least survive on this.
Felipe's customer base is almost always nearby, and Imeida is one of them.
Although health experts warn that recycled meat carries bacteria such as Salmonella, long-term consumption can damage health, resulting in diarrhea and even diseases such as cholera, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever. But for Imeida, who doesn't make a lot of money and has 10 children waiting to be fed, it's one of the few foods she can afford.
Imeda
"Pagpag" was very tasty.
After Imeda bought the recycled meat home, she had to cook it again. Although she had added a lot of seasonings to the previous session, she also added a packet of soy sauce and continued to stir-fry.
This alternative trade feeds and feeds so many poor people that poor people like Arnold and Felipe, who are engaged in meat recycling, repacking, and selling, support their entire families.
Recycling meat needs to grab business when picking up, and grabbing fresh food when selling, but this whole form is more like poor people saving lives and robbing the right to survive.
Living in the slums of Manila, the only resource people have is the city's garbage. In order to survive, the poor people have found a way to survive in the dirty and smelly garbage heap. In these bustling corners, all kinds of strange transactions that exceed the bottom line of ordinary people are being carried out in a bright and upright way.
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Why is there such a strange demand in the market? How do buyers and sellers trade? This highlights how peculiar social phenomena, cultural practices and human nature are in modern society and different countries.
Watch Phoenix Vision
"Extraordinary Trading - The Unknown Chain of Transactions"
Editor: Wang Dingyao