A tourist was left ‘flabbergasted’ after she was told she couldn’t take pease pudding – a Newcastle delicacy – on a flight with her.

Helen Hook had visited old friend Anne Watson in the North East over the weekend and had bought two tubs to share with her friend and husband.

But as she went to board the easyJet flight to Bristol before heading on to Dubai on Sunday night she was ordered to hand over the illicit substance.

Security officials deemed that it was banned under Civil Aviation Authority and Department for Transport rules that say liquids, gels, pastes and creams over 100ml or 100g can’t go through in hand luggage.

Pease pudding is made using split peas that are turned into a sandy-coloured spread. It is usually spread on top of ham inside a stottie (a massive pizza-sized muffin) and is rarely available outside the North East.

Anne, from Backworth in North Tyneside, said she couldn’t believe that the tubs had been deemed a security risk.

She said: ‘My friend Helen had come up from Bristol to spend the weekend up here.

‘She was asked by a friend to take some pease pudding back so she bought two tubs of pease pudding from the market in Tynemouth at the Priory.

‘She had it in her hand luggage when she went to the airport on Sunday. They said it was a liquid and confiscated it.’

Anne, a former teacher, added: ‘We were just flabbergasted. How can you describe pease pudding as a liquid?

‘I know you have got to have the security but we’re trying to sell the North East and it’s a local delicacy.’

Helen bought the delicacy at Tynemouth Christmas market – an original pease pudding for her friend and a beer-flavoured one for her husband.

She tried to give them to a security officer, but he binned them.

Anne, 52, said: ‘She said to one of the ladies, “I bought this from a farmers’ market can you have it?”, but they put it in the bin in front of her.’

Anne added Helen had been ‘disappointed’ to leave the pease pudding behind.

This is not the first time pease pudding has been flagged up by airport security.

In 2015, a 58-year-old man was stopped on his way to fly from Newcastle to Gatwick during routine searches of his hand luggage.

Source:
courtesy of METRO

by Richard Hartley-Parkinson

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