Rare SNAIL never before found in Australia stops hundreds of brand new Mercedes-Benz cars worth more than $50m from entering the country
- A shipment of 900 Mercedes-Benz cars worth $50million was barred from entry
- The shipment was set to import the luxury cars into NSW, QLD, VIC and WA
- However discovery of a rare snail not native to Australia halted importation
- The shipment now sits in quarantine and has been ordered to port of origin
A shipment of 900 brand new Mercedes-Benz cars has been stopped from entering the country and ordered back to its port of origin after a rare snail was found.
A number of heath snails, native to Europe and considered a ‘pest of agricultural and environmental significance’, were found in the shipment prompting action from the Government.
The Department of Agriculture ordered the shipment, currently sitting in quarantine off ports in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, and West Australia back to Europe.
A shipment of 900 brand new Mercedes-Benz cars worth $50million has been barred from entering the country and ordered back to its port of origin after a bio-security risk was identified
A number of heath snails (pictured), native to Europe and considered a ‘pest of agricultural and environmental significance’, were found in the shipment prompting action from the Government
The shipment will be sent back to Zeebrugge, Belgium inside shipping containers, CarAdvice reported.
Mercedes-Benz are set to lose a large sum of money on exporting the shipment, worth an estimated $50million, back to Europe.
The shipment contained a range of Mercedes from hatchbacks to sedans and sports cars, all of which are at risk of having been contaminated.
It is not yet known if the shipment will be resent to Australia after all the vehicles have been fumigated.
In an official statement Mercedes Benz announced it was ‘investigating the cause and managing the process in co-operation with the Department of Agriculture’.
An official statement from the Department of Agriculture hammered home the risk the snail would have posed had it gone unchecked.
‘The Heath snail is a pest of agricultural and environmental significance that are known to feed on a wide variety of crops including alfalfa, lupins, clover, wheat, barley, fruit trees and weeds causing harm to these plants.
‘Establishment in Australia poses a risk of contamination of crops by snail infestations and transmission of plant pathogens which risks damaging the agriculture sector.
‘The establishment of these parasites which are not present in Australia is a risk to livestock (harms animals) and risks damaging the primary production industry.’
The shipment contained a range of Mercedes from hatchbacks to sedans and sports cars, all of which are at risk of having been contaminated
Source: Read Full Article