Chin Ith boils palm juice to turn it to sugar at Trapang Ampel village, outside Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Friday, March 15, 2024. Her husband Chin Choeun collects sap from palm trees, which produces roughly 10 kilos (22 pounds) of sugar daily. They earn about 100,000 riel ( $25) a day from selling the sugar to local vendors. - AP
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP): Chin Choeun spends nearly 12 hours a day collecting sap from palm trees that he and his wife turn into palm sugar.
The 54-year-old boasts of being one of Cambodia's most skilful palm tree climbers, having learned the skill from his father. But after 36 years scaling tree after tree, Choeun plans to retire in the next couple of years, because of age-related safety concerns.
