Farmers spin straw for extra income

Reminiscent of Rumpelstiltskin, a story collected by the Brothers Grimm, rice farmers in South China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region have found a way to spin straw into gold - well, almost.

Modern farming machinery has replaced working cattle, leaving farmers with a surfeit of straw, a once valuable resource that both fed and cushioned the cattle after a long day in the fields.

Instead of wasting the straw, resourceful villagers are now spinning it into rope, turning the cattle fodder into a cash cow.