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Slimming tea to the stars is back on Ulster shelves

By Linda McKee
Friday, 11 January 2008

The Chinese tea reputed to have helped Victoria Beckham and Joss Stone keep their slender figures has arrived in Northern Ireland's shops.

While people may already be struggling to keep their New Year's resolutions, Ulster tea and coffee firm Robert Roberts is confident its new Blackcurrant Pu-erh Tea will offer a tasty solution.

The firm's original Pu-erh Tea disappeared rapidly off the shelves in autumn last year, attracting a celebrity cult following after it was reported that both Victoria Beckham and Joss Stone use it to promote weight loss.

The tea is named after the town where it originated in China's Yunnan Province and it is believed that it promotes healthy weight loss by boosting the metabolism and aiding the body to digest fatty foods.

Robert Roberts says the new fruity blackcurrant option is ideal for those who want all the benefits of Pu-erh tea but without the rich earthy flavour.

The tea's natural health properties, which include lowering cholesterol and blood pressure, have been enjoyed and respected in China for thousands of years and the Robert Roberts version has made the speciality tea widely available in Northern Ireland without the usual hefty price tag, the company said.

Robert Roberts NI managing director Gareth Bradley said: "Northern Ireland's speciality and herbal fruit tea market has experienced significant growth in recent years so I'm confident that Blackcurrant Pu-erh Tea will be a welcome addition and one which shall prove popular as people embark on a healthy start to the new year."