@Tuveanthermark yes, surströmming is really that bad. The problem is that it still ferments in the can. One of my Swedish friends therefore likes it best when it's nearing the expiry date and the can gets under so much pressure that it swells... He said it adds to the taste. But that's also why it's forbidden on planes: in the air, the air pressure is lower than on the ground and so the can may explode due to pressure differences.
Now, we bought one can of the stuff (nearing the expiry date, as recommended) just out of curiosity and we took it to our cabin. We opened it in the kitchen, did spill a drop of the contents when doing so, and it smelled so intense and so bad that we instantly had to take it out to prevent people from throwing up. For over a year the kitchen in our cabin smelled like surströmming, no matter how much we tried to wash it and clean it.
Given this, this is the other reason why it's forbidden on planes: that the can may explode is one thing, but due to the smell the whole interior is written off at once, then.
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@Tuveanthermark yes, surströmming is really that bad. The problem is that it still ferments in the can. One of my Swedish friends therefore likes it best when it's nearing the expiry date and the can gets under so much pressure that it swells... He said it adds to the taste. But that's also why it's forbidden on planes: in the air, the air pressure is lower than on the ground and so the can may explode due to pressure differences.
Now, we bought one can of the stuff (nearing the expiry date, as recommended) just out of curiosity and we took it to our cabin. We opened it in the kitchen, did spill a drop of the contents when doing so, and it smelled so intense and so bad that we instantly had to take it out to prevent people from throwing up. For over a year the kitchen in our cabin smelled like surströmming, no matter how much we tried to wash it and clean it.
Given this, this is the other reason why it's forbidden on planes: that the can may explode is one thing, but due to the smell the whole interior is written off at once, then.