MINNEAPOLIS — U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials inspect all kinds of items packed by passengers on incoming international flights. This one is undoubtedly one of the more unique.
According to a CBP news release, an Iowa woman flying into Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP) last Friday declared that she was bringing back a small box of giraffe feces in her luggage after returning to the U.S. from a trip to Africa.
CBP agricultural specialists seized the box of droppings after the woman said she planned to use it to make a necklace.
“There is a real danger with bringing fecal matter into the U.S.,” LaFonda D. Sutton-Burke, CBP Director, Field Operations-Chicago Field Office, said in a statement. “If this person had entered the U.S. and had not declared these items, there is high possibility a person could have contracted a disease from this jewelry and developed serious health issues."
CBP said the feces was destroyed "via steam sterilization per United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) destruction protocol."
It's actually not illegal to import animal feces into the United States; however, it requires a Veterinary Services Permit to do so to avoid the spread of diseases and invasive pests. CBP said the box of giraffe feces was obtained from Kenya, where a number of livestock diseases are present.
“CBP agriculture specialists have extensive training and experience in the biological and agriculture sciences, they inspect travelers and cargo arriving in the United States by air, land, and seaports of entry," Augustine Moore, CBP Area Port Director for Minnesota, said in a statement.
Watch more Breaking The News:
Watch all of the latest stories from Breaking The News in our YouTube playlist:
WATCH MORE ON KARE 11+
Download the free KARE 11+ app for Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV and other smart TV platforms to watch more from KARE 11 anytime! The KARE 11+ app includes live streams of all of KARE 11's newscasts. You'll also find on-demand replays of newscasts; the latest from KARE 11 Investigates, Breaking the News and the Land of 10,000 Stories; exclusive programs like Verify and HeartThreads; and Minnesota sports talk from our partners at Locked On Minnesota.
- Add KARE 11+ on Roku here or by searching for KARE 11 in the Roku Channel Store.
- Add KARE 11+ on Fire TV here or by searching for KARE 11 in the Amazon App Store.
- Learn more about the KARE 11+ app for Apple TV in the Apple App Store.
- Learn more about KARE 11+ here.
