The Chinese are so desperate for clean air - amid the most disgusting pollution in history [3] - that they have turned to buying cans of fresh air to breathe during the most smog-filled days. With low oil prices crushing their economy, Canada has begun to export another resource as CNBC reports [4] Alberta-based Vitality Air [5] is selling "Rocky Mountain air" to the Chinese for $10 to $20 per can.
Facing this...
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The Chinese have turned to this...
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Canada may be struggling with low oil prices, but China's latest environmental crisis is proving to be a lucrative opportunity for another of its natural resources - Rocky Mountain air.
Alberta-based Vitality Air has been cashing in on Beijing's worsening air quality problems, selling aluminum cans of "fresh clean air and oxygen" from the picturesque Rocky Mountains for around $10 to $20 each.
Vitality Air's China representative Harrison Wang said told MailOnline that they sold out almost instantly after marketing the product on China's e-commerce website Taobao. They'll be sending another 700 bottles to China in the coming weeks, topping their first 500-bottle shipment.
"We have sold everything, and we now have a bunch of customers and people wanting to be our distributors," Harrison said.
As CNBC reports, [4]
Founders Moses Lam and Troy Paquette admitted to Canadian media that the project first started as a joke, selling their first sealable food bag of air for 99 cents on eBay. The then sold a second bag that raked in $168 Canadian dollars ($122).
They launched Vitality Air shortly afterward.
But for those who are still laughing at the idea of selling air that usually comes for free, the website reminds us that bottled water also used to be a punchline: "The truth is we've begun to appreciate the clean, pure and refreshing taste of quality water," the website reads. "Air is going the same way."
"Just like bottled water, premium air is a growing industry because people are noticing the difference."
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How long before Canadian air is taxed...?
