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This news is from the Telegraph UK (20 03 2012) -bhuban World's most expensive cuppa - fertilised with panda dung at £130 a cup The world's most expensive cup of tea is set to go on sale in China at £130 a cup - fertilised with panda dung. IAn Yanshi (R), wearing a panda costume, stands in a truck as he unloads panda droppings which are used as fertiliser at his tea farm during a media event in Ya'an, Sichuan province Photo: Reuters m 11:20AM GMT 19 Mar 2012 8 Comments An Yanshi, a 41-year-old former teacher and journalist, is using the bamboo-eaters' manure to help fertilise the organic green tea, which he believes will make the perfect brew. Tons of panda excrement, obtained from the nearby breeding centres in mountainous Ya'an in Sichuan province, will be used in growing the tea. Each lot of 50 grams will then go for 22,000 yuan (£2,200), which according to Mr An makes for the world's dearest cup of tea. Most people use about three grams per cup, meaning each one brewed would set one back over £130. Justifying the rather steep price, Mr An said the profits from the exotic tea would be channelled into an environmental fund. Future batches would also have a lower price tag. Wearing a panda suit during an event to promote his tea, Mr An offered his gratitude: "I thank heaven and earth for blessing us with this environmental panda tea." China's docile national treasures are capable of sparking a great deal of hype, particularly as zoological ambassadors for the nation. The arrival of 8-year-old giant pandas Tian Tian and Yang Guang, whose names translate as 'sweetness' and 'sunshine', drew a great deal of public and press attention for Edinburgh Zoo last December. Roughly a dozen guests were invited by Mr An to hand-pick the first batch of his organic panda-fertilised tea. "I just want to convey to the people of the world the message of turning waste into something useful, and the culture of recycling and using organic fertilisers." Commenting on the panda's digestive nature, Mr An said, "They are like a machine that is churning out organic fertiliser. They keep eating. "Also, they absorb less than 30 per cent of the nutrition from the food, and that means more than 70 per cent of the nutrients are passed out in their faeces." The giant panda's bamboo diet is difficult for the creatures to digest, meaning they have to spend a vast amount of their time eating the woody plant, which is technically a grass. "Fragrant" and "smooth" was how Mr An described the tea when its pickings were brewed for the very first time. Some of the invitees, however, were slightly more dubious about the bizarre beverage. "It's sold at such a sky-high price, perhaps this is just hype," said Li Ximing, 49. 'Environmental panda tea' isn't the only expensive dung-related cuppa. Coffees such as Kopi Luwak and Uchunari coffee, which hail from south-east Asia and Peru, can go for as high as £7,875 per pound. The reason for the price tag? The beans come from coffee berries eaten by the civet, a cat-like mammal whose enzymes in its stomach make the eventual brew less bitter. Naturally, the beans must first be picked out of its dun. _______________________________________________ assam mailing list [email protected] http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
