LONDON (JTA) — Hundreds of Esrogim, the citron fruit used for the holiday of Sukkot, were seized at an airport in England.
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The Animal and Plant Health Agency held up the shipment at the Manchester Airport under new and stricter regulations on the import of citrus fruit. Esrog importers were unaware of the new rules, the London-based Jewish Chronicle reported.
The Board of Deputies of British Jews worked with the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to have the 600 esrogim taken to a Manchester synagogue, where the stalks could be trimmed to meet the stricter rules, the Board of Deputies reported. The fruits also must be destroyed immediately after the holiday.
Some 10,000 etrogs were due to be imported to Britain for Sukkot this year.
Board of Deputies President Marie van der Zyl said the board’s “timely intervention” has “potentially saved Sukkot.”
“The waving of the lulav (palm branch) and esrog with hadas (myrtle) and arava (willow) is an essential and iconic part of the festival and it was vital to ensure the supply of etrogs for this year,” she said in a statement.
Van der Zyl called on suppliers to “ensure that etrogs are imported in full compliance with regulations in the years ahead.”
The shipmen was seized at the end of last month.
You can also thank the many people who brought illegal Khat in to the UK form Israel, causing them to clamp down on plants being imported.
No more info?
Dumb regulations.
It’s as dumb as the USA customs regulations not allowing any fruit, veg, meat from abroad, OK?
So pipe down
The U.S. Dept. of Agriculture does not permit tourists to bring fruit from Hawaii back to the mainland. One time, when I was at the airport in Honolulu, a U.S. Dept. of Agriculture inspector asked a female traveler if she had any fruit with her. She lied, and stated that she didn’t. However, the inspector found an apple in her possession, and stated in a firm voice “This looks like a fruit to me”. He told her to either eat it then, or discard it.