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Traveller Fined More Than $2,600 For Trying To Bring A McDonald's Meal Into Australia
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| Last updated
A traveller has learned the hard way what happens when you try to bring food into Australia.
Whenever you arrive into Australia, you're greeting with a video and a form explaining that you can't have certain items with you because of biosecurity issues.
One backpacker clearly didn't realise how serious those warnings were and rocked up with a McDonald's meal.
When they arrived into Darwin from Bali, their luggage was sniffed by out by the airport's new biosecurity detector dog Zinta.
The animal found two egg and sausage McMuffins and a ham croissant.
I mean, even a human could probably detect that juicy meal hidden in between jocks and socks.
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News Corp reports the passenger provided a 'false and misleading document' and didn't properly declare his Macca's meal.
This failure has cost the person a whopping $2,664 in fines.
Australia's border authorities are on high alert, especially for people coming from Indonesia, over fears of foot and mouth disease spreading.
Agriculture Minister Murray Watt says the passenger needs to have a real hard think about their actions.
"This will be the most expensive Macca’s meal this passenger ever has,” Senator Watt said.
“This fine is twice the cost of an airfare to Bali, but I have no sympathy for people who choose to disobey Australia’s strict biosecurity measures, and recent detections show you will be caught.
“Australia is FMD-free, and we want it to stay that way.
“Biosecurity is no joke – it helps protect jobs, our farms, food and supports the economy. Passengers who choose to travel need to make sure they are fulfilling the conditions to enter Australia, by following all biosecurity measures.”
Earlier this month, authorities detected foot and mouth disease in Chinese pork products at a Melbourne supermarket.
9News reports that the pork products in the Melbourne CBD were imported from Asia and contained fragments of the disease along with African swine fever.
People coming from Indonesia have been labelled a prime target because of the presence of foot-and-mouth disease in the country. 'including at the popular tourist destination Bali'.
Minister Watt explained to the ABC that everyone needs to take this risk seriously as it could severely decimate the agriculture industry if there's an outbreak.
“It’s concerning that despite all of the commentary and all of the work from industry, the government and other people, to educate people about what needs to be done, that unfortunately we are still finding passengers do the wrong thing,” he told ABC News.
“Unfortunately, there are some people who haven’t heard the message and that’s why the tough fines are needed."
Featured Image Credit: Supplied. Islandstock / Alamy Stock Photo
Topics: Australia, Food And Drink
