London City Airport donates confiscated tins and jars of food to Newham Foodbank in East London

Jars Confiscated by Airport Security Make Tasty Deposit for Foodbank

LONDON, 2015-4-16 — /Travel PR News/ — Ever wondered what happened to liquids you had confiscated by airport security?

Plenty of people each year fall foul of strict airport regulations that mean that no more than 100ml of liquids can be taken in hand luggage – that means tins and jars of food including anything from baked beans to maple syrup and jam to chocolate spread.

London City Airport (LCY) has revealed the most common food items confiscated from passengers who haven’t read the rules over the last 12 months. The top five confiscated items are:

1) Jam/marmalade
2) Marmite
3) Lyle’s golden syrup
4) Nutella chocolate spread
5) Heinz baked beans

However, the airport does not let the grub go to waste and has donated 300 items collected between January and March – with a combined value of more than £1000 – to Newham Foodbank in East London.

LCY security puts the phenomenon down to outbound passengers getting their fix of British brands – filling up their hand luggage with the intention of stocking their cupboards back at home or presenting iconic gifts to loved ones.

Branded items bought in London’s fashionable West End from retailers such as Harrods and Fortnum & Mason have proved very popular in security’s vaults – 34 jars of Fortnum & Mason jam, marmalade and lemon curd and 22 jars from Harrods were collected in the first three months of the year – but are now on their way to helping those in need.

Newham Foodbank, which feeds local people in crisis, is part of a national network of more than 400 foodbanks that supplied food in emergency to more than 900,000 people between 2013 and 2014.

A spokesperson for London City Airport said: “While we are very pleased to be able to find such a good home for confiscated items, we urge anyone flying from our airport to consider the rules when buying souvenirs so that they are not disappointed at Security.

“All liquids in hand luggage must be under 100ml and carried together in one, sealed, clear plastic bag, including any food items that may be classed as a paste. Anything larger must be checked in to make sure it gets to the other end.”

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