Narrator: In the remote forests of Northeastern China,
旁白：在中国东北偏僻的森林中
local harvesters climb trees as high as 100 feet
当地的采集者会爬上百尺高的树
to reach this region’s most valuable product.
以获取本地最珍贵的产品
Pine nuts.
松子
The job is dangerous, but the reward is high
这是一个高危职业
for people willing to risk their lives.
但对于愿意拿生命冒险的人来说 收益可观
In the US, pine nuts, which are actually seeds,
在美国 松子实际上被当做种子售卖
can sell for upwards of $117 a kilogram.
其销售单价超过每公斤117美元
Compare that to the price of pistachios,
相比于松子的价格
which can sell for about $39 a kilogram.
开心果的销售单价大约是39美元
So what makes pine nuts so special,
所以是什么让松子如此与众不同
and why are they so expensive?
松子的价格又为何如此高昂
Around the world, there are 30 species
世界各地分布着30种
of pine trees that produce edible seeds.
产生可食用种子的松树
Yet only a handful are sold commercially,
但只有少部分能被用于商业销售
like Korean pine, which grows here in Northeastern China.
例如生长在中国东北的红松
It needs specific conditions to grow,
它需要特殊的生长条件
and unlike almonds and pecans,
不像可以在果园和种植园
which can be commercially grown
进行商业化种植的
on orchards and plantations,
杏仁和山核桃
most pine nuts come from natural forests.
大部分松子都取自天然森林
The trees need to grow for at least 25 to 50 years
松树至少需要生长25到50年的时间
before they bear cones and seeds.
才能结出松果和种子
Even after all this time,
即使经历了如此漫长的生长期
individual trees will only be ripe for picking
一棵树也要每隔两年才适宜
once every two years.
采摘果实
When the time comes, local harvesters
当时机到来时
make their way into the forest
当地的采集者们一到森林
to do the most dangerous part of the job
就会开始做这份工作中
the moment they arrive:
最危险的部分：
scaling those 100-foot trees
为获取松果和种子
to reach the cones and seeds.
而攀爬那些百尺高的树木
Narrator: Those who are willing
旁白：那些愿意的人
climb 20 to 30 trees each day,
每天攀爬20到30颗树
armed with long poles
将靴子上绑上长杆和尖刺
and spikes attached to their boots,
用它们把松果敲落到
which they use to knock the cones to the forest floor.
森林的地面上
Narrator: Because of the risk,
因为这项工作风险很大
and because this job can’t be done by machines,
并且无法由机器替代
processors must also pay for accident insurance.
加工者还必须支付
It costs about 900 yuan, or $139,
大约每人每月900元
per worker each month.
也就是139美元的意外险
And insurance costs get even more expensive
对于采伐公司来说
for harvesting companies when paying for workers by the day.
如果按日结算工人工资 保险费用会更昂贵
Narrator: Another unpredictable element
采集松子时
of harvesting pine nuts
另一个不可测的因素是
is just how much time harvesters have
每个季节
to collect the pine cones each season.
采集者们能够收集松果的时长
For example, the Korean pine season
例如 红松的收获季
typically starts on September 1
通常开始于九月一日
and can last as long as two months
或可持续长达两个月
or be as short as 20 days.
或可短至二十天
This brief window of time means laborers
如此短暂的时间意味着
have to collect as many cones as possible
工人们必须尽可能多地收集松果
into their large burlap sacks.
装进大粗麻袋里
On average, they can fill four to six bags a day,
平均下来 他们一天可以装满四到六个麻袋
with a single sack often weighing as much as 142 pounds.
每个袋子一般重达142磅
They get paid by processors in two ways.
工人们有两种方式可获得加工方的报酬
First, they earn a day rate,
第一种 他们按日结算工资
which is around $123 a day.
每天大概是123美元
And second, they get paid by how much they harvest.
第二种 他们按采集量计算酬劳
As of September 2021, a processor will pay $720
自2021年9月起 整整四袋松果
for four full bags of cones.
可以换取加工方720美元的酬劳
These bags then go to a processing facility,
接下来这些麻袋会被运送到加工厂里
where the cones are opened and crushed
为了露出松果里的松子壳
to reveal the pine nut shells inside.
松果会被撬开 碾压
Cones that are sold to processors
销售给加工者的松果
often come in green and unripened
通常呈绿色 而且未成熟
and need additional processing.
还需进行额外加工
Narrator: Knowing exactly when a pine cone
旁白：精确地了解松果
needs to be threshed
需要何时脱粒
is an important part of the process,
是加工过程的重要组成部分
as it can determine the quality of the seeds inside
因为它可以决定种子内部的质量
and ultimately the final price they can be sold for.
和它们的最终售价
Narrator: It’s only after the pine cone scales are opened
旁白：只有当松果的鳞片打开时
that the pine nuts can be extracted,
松子才能被提取出来
and even then, the cones don’t yield many seeds.
即使那样 松果也不会产出很多种子
Narrator: This means that 250 kilograms of pine cones
旁白：这意味着250公斤的松果
yields only 50 kilograms of pine nuts.
只能产出50公斤的松子
Because a majority of pine trees grow in natural forests,
大部分松树都生长在天然森林里
there are large variations in the yield from year to year.
因此每年的产量都有巨大的变化
This causes demand to often outweigh supply,
这导致需求经常大于供给
driving the overall price of pine nuts up.
抬高了松子的总价
But the price of each pine nut also depends on its size.
但每颗松子的价格也取决于它的大小
Narrator: Once processed, some seeds are sold
旁白：加工过后
as they are now, in their shells.
一些种子就像现在这样被带壳销售
Others are sold as the white nuts
另一些则以你在香蒜酱等菜品里
you see in dishes like pesto.
见到的白色坚果的形式出售
They’re the same nuts,
这些白色坚果就是松子
just with the outer shell removed.
只是它们去掉了外壳
The two largest producers of pine nuts
最大的两个松子产地
are East Asia and the Mediterranean.
是东亚和地中海
Korean pine, which is the most common species
中国最常见的品种
to grow in China,
红松
makes up 59% of the world’s global supply.
占全球松子供应量的百分之五十九
By 2025, the pine nut market
到2025年
is expected to grow by $332 million.
松子市场预计将增长3.32亿美元
And with a growing demand
并且随着对香蒜酱和鹰嘴豆泥等食物
for foods like pesto and hummus,
需求的增长
it’s likely that the price you pay for pine nuts
松子的价格很有可能
will only continue to rise.
只会与日俱增