An Yashi, a professor at Sinchuan University in China, is the inventor of the tea made with panda droppings. He said that the price – a whopping $80,000 (almost £51,000) per kilogram – is justified by the tea’s special health benefits.
“Pandas have a very poor digestive system and only absorb about 30 percent of everything they eat,” he told Chinese website Scol.com.cn. “That means their excrement is rich in fibres and nutrients.”
Yashi added: “[The tea] has a mature, nutty taste and a very distinctive aroma while it’s brewing.”
The professor also pointed to the health benefits of bamboo, a fair amount of which presumably turns up in panda poo.
“Just like green tea, bamboo contains an element that can prevent cancer,” he explained. He said that the presence of bamboo could “enhance green tea’s anti-cancer effects, if it is used as fertiliser for the tea”.
Yashi has been awarded a patent for the tea.
Fancy a nutty-tasting cup of panda poo-tinged tea? We recommend you start saving.
