Costly holiday for cruise passenger returning with undeclared souvenirs

On January 1, Australia increased penalties for biosecurity breaches in light of the threat to the risks to the nation's economy, notably the livestock industry.

The removal of border closures post-pandemic has seen the expected boom in international travel.

A cruise passenger on a ship which originated in New Zealand tried recently to enter the Brisbane International Cruise Terminal carrying a large amount of plant material including: two live plants, a coconut shell, seed pods, betel nut, mustard sticks, shells, coral, and dried plant materials.

These undeclared souvenirs added $3300 to the cost of the traveller's holiday.

Cruise ship travellers are reminded to check their bags before attempting to enter Australia and to declare all food, plant material and animal products when arriving in Australia.

Deputy secretary for biosecurity and compliance Chris Locke said the infringement was the first issued since the resumption of international cruise travel.

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Dr Locke said it served as a warning for all travellers to ensure they comply with Australia's biosecurity laws.

"It is fantastic to have cruise ships back at our ports, but we do not want anyone to go home with more than they bargained for by breaching our biosecurity laws," Dr Locke said.

"Australia is a unique place and the protection of our precious environment and wildlife is why we are so vigilant when it comes to biosecurity."

Economists say a foot and mouth disease outbreak in Australia could cost $80 billion.

FMD and lumpy skin disease are just two of the nasties threatening the nation's biosecurity defences, both rampant in Indonesia.

Australia is free from many pests and diseases found around the world.

Plant material is highly attractive to a considerable range of pests and diseases including arthropods, nematodes, bacteria, fungi, viruses, and viroids, which feed, live and reproduce on and in the plant material and remain viable for prolonged periods of time.

Dr Locke said there is also the potential for significant animal biosecurity diseases to be associated with plant products, including FMD and African swine fever, which are high priority pathogens for Australia.

Many exotic pests and diseases can easily survive transport and storage conditions and can be easily distributed into the Australian environment where they could become established and spread further to new areas.

Plant material can also become contaminated with a range of other biosecurity risk material such as infected soil, live animals such as snails, weed seeds, and animal faeces.