Customs assisted AQIS with an interesting find when a consignment of unaccompanied personal effects from Ghana, declared as cosmetics and food, turned out to be more than expected in Perth recently.

Australian Customs and Border Security officers Robert Hobson and Val Yau inspected the consignment and came across a mountain of fresh fruits and vegetables which were then photographed, separated from the main consignment, and placed in a plastic bag for protection. Once the package was resealed and wrapped in Quarantine hold tape, Robert and Val immediately referred the matter to AQIS officer Ross Anderson.

'It was a very large consignment of fruit and vegetables that were detected with the help of Customs,' explained Ross.  

When the client came in to collect the goods, they were further inspected by AQIS officers Ron Hays and Ian Bulloch. The officers then seized 28 fresh ripe bananas, six very large taros or yams, and 14 fresh baby egg plants. The officers then explained in detail the risks of bringing such food into Australia, especially fresh bananas, due to the danger of Black Sigatoka fungus.

'I explained to the client that bananas can carry many diseases including black Sigatoka, a fungus that causes economic hardship to growers. The fruit and vegetables had to be destroyed' said Ian.

Although disappointed that she was not going to be able to enjoy the fruit and vegetables, the client was happy to accept that the items were not allowed entry in to Australia and were to be destroyed under AQIS supervision.

'This is an example of the great working relationship that we have with our Customs colleagues' Ross said. The Customs officers involved in the detection were formally recognised for their effort in the detection.