Italian giant truffle sold for 105,000 euros

A giant white truffle was sold off on Sunday to a Hong Kong buyer for 105,000 euros (144,000 dollars) at a lavish auction near the town of Alba in northern Italy, organisers said. The truffle weighed 900 grammes and the auction was held at the medieval Castello di Grinzane in a part of Italy famous for its wine and truffles.
The price per gramme for the truffle was therefore 117 euros - lower than the rate of 133 euros per gramme paid at the same auction last year. Last year's truffle also went to a buyer from Hong Kong. Proceeds from the auction will go to scholarships for Italian students, a children's charity in Hong Kong and local charities in Alba.
"Truffle allows gourmets and gourmands from around the world to meet up in this corner of the Piemonte region to give life to an event with a big following," said Tomaso Zanoletti, a senator and one of the organisers.