Food tourism

Anyone who is flying back home has been warned about the serious consequences

Travellers flying home after a holiday are being warned not to bring back certain items, even if they were purchased at a duty free shop. According to government rules, people who disobey risk facing a £5,000 fine or possible prosecution.

In an alert posted on social media by the Animal and Plant Health Agency, Brits returning home should not bring sandwiches, cheese, cured meats, raw meats or milk into Great Britain. The agency also states that this applies regardless of whether it is packed or packaged, or whether it has been bought at duty free.

It explains: “Help protect UK farmers from the devastating threat of African swine fever (ASF) and foot and mouth disease (FMD) by not bringing back meat or dairy products from the EU into Great Britain in your personal luggage. This includes items like sandwiches, cheese, cured meats, raw meats or milk into Great Britain – regardless of whether it is packed or packaged or whether it has been bought at duty free.”

The government agency says it is illegal to bring in most meat and dairy products from abroad for personal use. This is to protect the UK from devastating livestock diseases circulating in Europe and beyond.

Most personal meat and dairy products are now banned from entry into Great Britain. You must not bring in sandwiches, meat (raw or cured, such as ham and salami), dairy (milk, yoghurt, cheese) and animal-derived products. That includes items bought from duty free.

If you declare banned food products to Border Force officers at customs, they’ll take them away and destroy them. If you do not declare banned food products, you could be fined up to £5,000 (in England) or you could be prosecuted. Border Force can take away (‘seize’) your products if they think:

• you’ve brought something into the country illegally
• you’ve brought in too much of a restricted product
• it’s been cross-contaminated, for example with blood from meat – if any clothing or a bag the item’s in is contaminated, it’ll be destroyed

These rules are in place to protect the UK from highly infectious viral diseases of livestock, such as foot and mouth disease and African swine fever. These viruses can persist in meat and dairy products for several months, posing a risk to susceptible animals.

Neither disease affects humans. Livestock diseases like foot and mouth and African swine fever have a devastating impact on animal welfare, farming, trade and affect food security

The Animal and Plant Health Agency reminds travellers: “If you break the rules, you are breaking the law. If you break the rules, you are risking our food and economic security. If you break the rules, you could be responsible for the death of millions of animals. If you are found with undeclared illegal meat and dairy products, you will have these confiscated and risk a hefty fine.”

What are you allowed to bring into Great Britain?

You can bring the following into Great Britain from any country without any restrictions:

• bread, but not sandwiches filled with meat or dairy products
• cakes without fresh cream
• biscuits
• chocolate and confectionery, but not those made with a lot of unprocessed dairy ingredients
• pasta and noodles, but not if mixed or filled with meat or meat products
• packaged soup, stocks and flavourings
• processed and packaged plant products, such as packaged salads and frozen plant material
• food supplements containing small amounts of an animal product, such as fish oil capsules

A British expat in Tenerife called Caitlin Camp has shared her honest verdict after trying a popular three-course meal at a restaurant on the Canary Islands, as the price left her floored

A woman has shared her honest verdict after trying a three-course meal in the middle of Tenerife, as the price left her floored.

Caitlin Camp, from Manchester, often takes to her social media pages to document and share her life in Tenerife, after having moved there from the UK with her husband, Mattie, and daughter. After living on the Canary Islands for a few years, the family-of-three often shares snippets of their life, including things to do in Tenerife and what life is like as business owners, owning multiple jewellery stores.

In one video, the family brought a friend to try a three-course meal from a restaurant that often goes viral on social media, due to how cheap it is.

“We’re in Tenerife, and we’re on the hunt for the three-course for a tenner menu,” Caitlin said at the start of the video.

As they arrived at the restaurant, called the Savoy, they noticed the offer was in fact €12.95 (£11) for a three-course meal, as she went on to show off the extensive menu available to read outside the restaurant.

“Oh, yum. There’s actually a few things I can see already,” she said as she was reading through the menu.

Meanwhile, Mattie said he’d been looking at the Chinese side of the menu, which was a three-course oriental meal for €12.95 (£11), including a starter, a main with a noodle or rice dish, as well as a dessert.

For their starter, she and her friend opted for some garlic bread, while the man ordered the hot and spicy soup from the Oriental menu. The two women then also got Spaghetti Bolognese for their mains, while Mattie opted for egg fried rice with a curry-like dish to go with it.

After taking a bite, Caitlin said: “First impressions? It’s not terrible. It’s very much you get what you pay for.”

As they got their food, she also shared the kids meal for had come with a main, with her opting for a pizza for her daughter, as well as ice cream for dessert.

Meanwhile, the adults ordered chocolate cake, cheesecake, and ice cream for their desserts. Taking a bite from his cheesecake, Mattie said: “It’s something. It’s not cold. I thought it was gonna be cold. And it’s lukewarm.”

The chocolate cake wasn’t a hit for Caitlin either, as she took a bite and soon declared: “No, this isn’t for me. I’m not a fan of this.”

In total, for the three three-course meals and a kids meal, as well as their drinks, their dinner outing came to €72.87 (£61.97).

Despite the mixed reviews of the food, several people soon took to the comment section to share their thoughts, with one person saying: “Went there last year was €10.95 I think gone up a bit, 3 course for €12 is an absolute steal. And the foods not even that bad.”

“We always come here whenever we come to Tenerife. The food is okay and the staff are lovely,” a second person said, while a third viewer wrote: “Been loads of time cheap and well worth it.”

Someone else said: “The Chinese meal looked way better than the Bolognese.”