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Rows of workers shelter under umbrellas from the scorching heat as they painstakingly sort through a red carpet of millions of chilli peppers in Bogra, Bangladesh on October 3, 2023. They sort the rotten and broken chilli peppers out to separate the poor quality ones which won't sell. In a line, the pickers who are paid less than £3 for a 10-hour shift slowly move forward with their baskets to separate the bad from the good after the chilies have been dried in the sun for a week. The dried & sorted chillies are then packaged and taken to the local market where they are brought mainly by companies to be made into chilli powder. The workers sort them in a warm environment, with temperatures reaching up to 45°C. More than 5,000 people work in almost 100 chilli farms in the Bogra district of Bangladesh to supply local spice companies with chillies for their recipes. Known as “Lal Morich” to the locals, chilli peppers are a major part of Bengali cuisine and are used as part of a combination of spices for various meat dishes, including chicken and beef. (Photo by Joy Saha/Rex Features/Shutterstock)
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