The ‘ndujaone of the symbolic products of the Calabrian gastronomic tradition, it can finally be transported in hand luggage – therefore directly in the cabin – by passengers departing from the airports of Lamezia Terme, Reggio Calabria and Crotone. The green light from Sacal (Calabrian airport system, the company that manages the three airports in the region) arrives after the approval of the security management of theEnacfollowing a request – from Sacal itself – to modify the provisions in force which also prohibited these products from coming on board with the passenger, allowing transport only in the hold, because they contain, in a certain percentage, mixtures of liquids and solids and, therefore, classified among foods and potentially dangerous substances.
The green light from ENAC
“The ‘nduja – it is written in Sacal’s request to Enac – is a typical Calabrian spreadable sausage, included in the list of traditional Italian agri-food products, which by its nature does not change shape, although it has a non-solid consistency. In order to safeguard tourism, promote the image of Calabria regionas well as the typical nature of the local products and, also taking into account the fact that the numerous rejected cured meats are thrown away from time to time, without any possibility of recovery, where nothing prevents this, this Management requests that the necessary provisions be given so that the ‘nduja, in departure from Calabrian airports, is admitted for carriage in baggage”.
After Enac’s approval, Sacal gave the necessary instructions to those responsible for controls and law enforcement, so that the ‘nduja departing from the three Calabrian airports is also allowed to be transported in hand luggage.
“It seemed legitimate to us to make this request – explains the sole director of Sacal Marco Franchini – because it was a regulation that was causing negative consequences in terms of image and food waste. We realized that this provision forced many Calabrians and tourists to leave large quantities of ‘nduja on the ground”.
The precedent of Genoese pesto
As mentioned by the management, the story follows a similar campaign successfully launched for pesto from the airport genovese. On the website ofGenoa airporttoday, we also read in English that the delicious condiment which, to be pure, requires basil from the hills of Pràand which inevitably has a partly liquid consistency, due to the olive oil, is allowed in the cabin in quantities of up to 500 ml, compared to the 100 ml allowed for liquids.
One perplexity remains. For understandable reasons of recognisability – for example a Genova for the packaging to comply with standards, labeling issued by theAscom local – the two exemptions for typical products are valid only in the airports of the regions which are the custodians of typical products. Who leaves from Pisa the da Torino with a jar of pesto, or from Palermo, Bari o Napoli with a form of ‘nduia, will continue to have typical products confiscated. Someone try to explain this to a tourist coming from overseas, please.