Locals say say how they really feel about tourists buying cans of Lake Como air for £8

Locals inhave said they are 'ashamed' after souvenir sellers began selling cans of air to for €10.

Sealed 400ml cans containing air bottled around the beauty spot have begun to appear alongside more typical trinkets in at least two different locations surrounding the lake. It is claimed that each €10 (£8) can contain 0.93% argon, 0.04% carbon dioxide, and a small amount of nitrogen and neon found on the lakeside. The idea behind the product is that visitors who fall in love with the lake and its picturesque surroundings will want to bring a bit of the fresh air home with them once their getaway has finished - but not everyone is impressed.

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One person living nearby told the Ansa news agency: "I think it’s better to breathe the actual air of Como. Buying it doesn’t bring the same satisfaction". Another said the money-making gimmick using the name of the area made him feel "ashamed".

Explaining why her marketing agency had launched the bizarre product, Daniele Abagnale, 36, told : "We wanted to create a reminder that people can easily take home in their suitcases. When the can is opened it obviously loses its charm a bit."

Lake Como is not the first place to have its air 'canned' for happy-to-spend tourists, with similar pieces of merchandise having being appeared in the Swiss Alps and the Isle of Man in recent years. One of the very first people known to attempt the stunt was Gennaro Ciaravolo, who invented ‘Aria di Napoli’ with air from Naples shortly after World War II following Italy's liberation by Allied forces.

Using sealed bottles given out by the US army, he came up with the product as a tribute to the local spirit of 'cazzimma', which is the practice of being resourceful and making do with the means you have. He is even said to have sold some of the bottles back to American troops. In 1970, his grandson re-attempted the gimmick at the Venice Biennale art show, where he showed off 'fried air' from Milan, fog from London’s Carnaby Street and sacred air from Rome.