Australian authorities fined a traveler returning home from Bali the equivalent of $1,874 USD for two McDonald's breakfast sandwiches, some pancakes, and a ham and cheese croissant in the passenger's luggage.
Bali currently has an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease, and Australia has barred all food imports from the nation since food can carry the disease.
This particular McDonald's breakfast was discovered by a hungry, dog detective named Zinta at the Darwin airport.
Oops, wrong hungry dog detective.
This is Zinta.
Murry Watt, Australia's agriculture minister, praised Zinta in a press release:
This will be the most expensive [McDonald's] meal this passenger ever has, this fine is twice the cost of an airfare to Bali, but I have no sympathy for people who choose to disobey Australia's strict biosecurity measures, and recent detections show you will be caught.
Australia is basically an Orwellian police state now, but not getting people sick is still a good idea.
The food in question was tested for FMD, and then the breakfast items were destroyed.
It's unclear if this crepe put his or her breakfast in the carry-on or checked baggage. I honestly find it egg-cruciatingly frustrating that more people don't consider food safety when it comes to leftovers (even if McDonald's, being barely edible, is near impervious to bacteria).
A direct flight from Bali to Darwin airport is 2 hours and 30 minutes. Once you factor in security checks and customs, this passenger was already croissant the line with bacterial growth here.
Zinta probably kept this person from food poisoning or having to actually eat McDonald's (not sure which is worse).
Good dog!
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Shout out to subscribers @noneoftheabove and @satirenap for the heads up about these traveling McMuffins.
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