British air sold to China at £80 a bottle

A businessman is selling decanters of “fresh air” bottled in Britain to the Chinese at £80 a time.

Leo De Watts, 27, said the smog-plagued elite of Beijing and Shanghai were snapping up the bottles promising the characteristic aromas of Dorset, Somerset, Wales, Wiltshire and Yorkshire.

Mr De Watts, of Gillingham, Dorset, but who lives in Hong Kong, said that in just a few weeks his company, Aethaer – named after the ancient Greek for “pure” – fresh air, had sold 180 580ml containers.

He said each area had its own aroma: “Dorset air seems to pick up a few more scents of the ocean, whereas air from the Yorkshire Dales tends to filter its way through much more flora.”

He added: “When someone bottled water everyone thought it was ridiculous, now you have Evian and Volvic – why not bottle air?”