THE pome and citrus industry have a dog to thank for helping protect their industry against imported nasties.
Last month, biosecurity detector dog Izzy sniffed out more than ten kilos of undeclared and illegally imported fruit and meat products in a passenger's bags
Izzy was doing some routine sniffing when she responded to a passenger's bag and biosecurity officers soon found out what had caught her nose.
Head of Biosecurity, Lyn O'Connell, said they found almost 8kg of nashi pear, 2kg of oranges, 325g of chicken meat and more than 2kg of pork products which included pig meat, sausages and trotters.
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"A further search revealed the passenger was also carrying 650g of nashi pears in another bag," Ms O'Connell said.
"There is no excuse if you bring these or other biosecurity risk items to Australia. Either leave them at home, or don't be sorry and just declare them."
"These types of meat products can transmit diseases that would be devastating for Australia, including African swine fever (ASF) and FMD."
The fresh fruit in the passenger's bag could have been harbouring diseases and pests such as citrus canker and fruit fly.
The goods were destroyed and the passenger was issued an infringement notice.
"Our dogs do a great job sniffing out potential risk items, but every passenger that travels to Australia has an obligation to follow our conditions," Ms O'Connell said.
"It can save you time and money, as well as ensure you are doing your part to keep our country free of deadly pests and diseases."
