A 40-year-old man has been fined $5,000 for attempting to illegally import cooked embryonated duck eggs — otherwise known as the Filipino delicacy balut — into Singapore.
Lea Soon Lieo, aka Mohd Syukri Bin Sabri Lea, was planning to smuggle the eggs into the country for sale, and one of his buyers was 30-year-old Ramiscal Quenny Dela Cruz. She was subsequently slapped with a $2,500 fine for abetting the offence.
It was on Apr 30 this year that Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) officers uncovered 148 balut eggs hidden in two suitcases inside the boot and spare tyre compartment of the car driven by Lea. Both Lea and Ramiscal were detained at Tuas Checkpoint, and the case was handed over to the Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) for further investigation.
The eggsotic exotic snacks were subsequently seized and destroyed.
According to a joint statement released by AVA and ICA, there are currently no approved sources of balut eggs in Singapore. The maximum penalty for importing meat products, including balut, from unapproved sources is a $50,000 fine and/or a jail sentence of up to two years.
“While Singapore is free from bird flu, the disease is endemic in the region,” both agencies said. “Smuggled food products, which may not have undergone the necessary heat treatment to inactivate the virus, is a risk for public and animal health”.
You can refer to AVA’s website for more info on travellers’ allowances for meat products from overseas travels.
