A traveler from Indonesia has been fined thousands of dollars for sneaking two beef sausage McMuffins and a ham croissant into Australia.
Key points:
Biosecurity measures have ramped up since foot-and-mouth disease was detected in Bali
The fast food snacks were seized and will be tested for the disease
A domestic outbreak has the potential to decimate the Australian agriculture industry
Passengers returning from Indonesia have been facing tougher biosecurity checks, after the detection of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in cows in Bali.
The highly contagious disease, which is yet to reach Australia, affects cattle, sheep, goats, and pigs, and the virus would have severe consequences for the nation’s animal health and trade.
A biosecurity detector dog at Darwin airport sniffed out the fast food meat products in a passenger’s backpack last week, with the traveler fined $2,664.
The pork and beef snacks were seized and will be tested for foot-and-mouth disease, before being destroyed.
An outbreak of the disease in Indonesia has prompted Australian biosecurity officials to categorize some meat products as “risk items”.
Biosecurity measures have ramped up since foot-and-mouth disease was detected in Bali.(ABC News: Michael Franchi)
Minister for Agriculture, Murray Watt, said he wanted Australia to stay free of the disease.
