(ECNS) -- Vendors in Southwest China's Yunnan Province are putting fresh air into sealed plastic bags and selling it online for 18.8 yuan ($2.7) per bag, reported a local news portal.
The move has sparked heated public debate though the sales volume turned out low.
Sun Wenjie, a lawyer, said that air is not a type of merchandize according to China's legal provisions, so such business is suspected of being unlicensed, and it would be difficult to complain if anyone finds himself to be fooled.
In fact, selling "fresh air" in a bag or a bottle is not new in China. This time, the air was mainly collected in Dali and Lijiang, where air quality was consistently good despite north China being cloaked in smog earlier this week.
It was a good opportunity to let more people know about Yunnan's exceptional environment, a web user commented.
Selling Yunnan's fresh air could also be seen as a way to raise concern about the pollution issue, Hu Kailin, an environmental science expert said.
However, linking Yunnan with healthy products is a habitual practice and some experienced customers advise that one should think twice before buying these unbranded products.
