In celebration of the Year of the Pig this 2007, Chinese authorities are introducing postage stamps that smells and taste like the popular Chinese dish of sweet and sour pork.

The stamps have been out in the market ahead of the official Chinese New Year which falls on February 18, it was reported.

Postal authorities claim that scratching the stamp will give off a scent of the dish, but when you lick the back of the stamp, it will taste of the dish too.

Britain's Royal Mail was the first to introduce the scratch 'n' sniff stamp in 2001. But its version only gave off a eucalyptus aroma.

New Zealand followed suit in 2004 when it introduced a 45-cent stamp that gives off the scent of New Zealand-bred magnolia when scratched.