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CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia for the first time has canceled a tourist's visa over undeclared food as the country tries to keep itself free of African swine fever.
Agriculture Minister Bridget McKenzie said Tuesday a 45-year-old woman who arrived at Sydney International Airport on Saturday had undeclared food in her luggage including pork. She was sent home to Vietnam and banned from returning to Australia for three years.
Australia is free of the disease that has wiped out pig populations across Asia and Europe. But the disease was recently detected in East Timor, a near neighbor where Australian veterinarians are working with local authorities on an eradication plan.
McKenzie says the proportion of seized pork contaminated with African swine fever has increased from 15% in February to 48% in September.
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