On 2 May this year, Australian June Armstrong (77) was to fly home from New Zealand to Australia. Unaware of what awaited, it was going to be a far more expensive journey than expected, writes The New Zealand Herald.
At the airport in the city of Christchurch, Armstrong bought a chicken sandwich and a muffin that she intended to eat during the flight to Brisbane.
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– When I got on the plane, I ate a bit of my muffin and threw the rest away. I put the sandwich in the bag, but then I forgot it during the journey, says Armstrong to The New Zealand Herald.
– Started to cry
When she went through security in Australia, customs officials found the chicken sandwich that Armstrong had forgotten.
– I said “I had forgotten that, can you throw it for me?”, says June.
Then the inspector said that she had to pay a fine of 3,300 Australian dollars – this corresponds to 23,100 Norwegian kroner. At first Armstrong thought it was all a joke.
She understood that the customs officer was serious, and then it became too much for the 77-year-old.
Rages after this: – Pissed off
– I started crying and said “$3,300 for a small sandwich?”, says Armstrong.
She tried in vain to dispute the customs fee, but after several attempts to get away from the fine, she has now paid the sum.
Armstrong says that she and her husband cannot afford such an extra expense in their everyday lives.
Can’t get an answer
– We have worked terribly hard all our lives for what we have. I think about that penance day and night. I am completely overwhelmed by how much the expense will affect our lives, says Armstrong.
She has sent several e-mails to the customs office to find out why they had to pay over NOK 23,000 for the sandwich. At the time of writing, she has still not received an answer.
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Armstrong and her husband have been married for 47 years and had saved up A$30,000 for life after work, in addition to the pension they receive from the government.
Want to warn
She does not believe that the money will be returned to them, but wants more answers to all her questions. She also wants to warn others.
The Herald has approached the Australian Government’s Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry for comment, but the newspaper has yet to receive a response.
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According to the ministry’s website it says: “If a traveler fails to declare goods of a type known to pose a high level of biosecurity risk, a breach can add up to points (worth A$3,756).”
Must prevent infection
In Norway, you are not allowed to introduce meat and milk products in your personal luggage, or in postal items from countries outside the EEA area without approval from the Norwegian Food Safety Authority, the customs agency reports on its websites.
The rules are in place to prevent the spread of dangerous infections from meat, meat products, milk or milk products from countries outside the EEA area.
For example, it is thought that the foot-and-mouth disease outbreak in the UK and parts of the European continent in 2007 occurred because pigs on a farm were fed untreated food scraps that had been illegally imported.
Here you will find an overview of which countries are members of the EU/EEA.
2023-11-21 14:40:56
#Sandwiches #cost #NOK
