Sea Cucumber (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)
A Chinese passenger was stopped at Cairo International Airport Wednesday and denied permission to board his plane for having sea cucumber in his luggage.
The passenger was due to travel to Peking. He was carrying three kilogrammes of the sea animal, which is an ingredient in Chinese cuisine, Al-Ahram Arabic news website reported.
Authorities at the airport allowed him to board only after he agreed to leave the sea cucumber behind.
The soft, gelatinous echinoderm's main markets are in Southeast Asia and the Far East. It is believed to have medicinal benefits.
According to a Reuters report, a kilogramme can be sold for $135 in Chinese wholsesale markets.
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