The Australian pork industry has condemned the light sentence handed out to a Sydney woman convicted this week of illegally importing 62 tonnes of pork and other animal protein from Thailand.

The woman was convicted on 11 June on nine counts against the Biosecurity Act 2015. She was sentenced to 24 months imprisonment, to be served by way of an Intensive Corrections Order. The NSW Corrective Services website describes an Intensive Corrections Order as a custodial sentence of up two years that the court decides can be served in the community. The offender was also ordered to serve 150 hours of Community Service.

Readers providing comment on yesterday’s article expressed clear frustration in the lack of a clear deterrent handed down by the court.

Australian Pork Limited chief executive Margo Andrae said while her organisation applaud the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries for upholding these border protocols and for bringing the person responsible to trial, it was gravely disappointed that a seizure of 62t of product – a flagrant and deliberate attempt to bypass biosecurity laws – did not result in a custodial sanction.

The foodstuffs, comprising pork meat – a high-risk source of Foot & Mouth Disease and African Swine Fever – plus prawns, frogs and insect-infested fruit and vegetables – were deliberately mis-declared in import documents. The produce was being sold on Sydney’s black market.

The offending included product substitution and the presentation of false and misleading documents to evade biosecurity controls, the court heard.

The fact that a confidential source tipped off the Department about the “prolific amount of prohibited food from Thailand available on the black market in Sydney,” clearly suggests the offender had been operating for some time.

“Australia’s biosecurity laws are some of the strictest in the world, for good reason,” Ms Andrae said.

“Biosecurity is our first line of defence against critical diseases that put our animals and our hardworking farmers at risk. Actions like this not only pose a risk for the pork industry, but the entire agricultural sector, and undermine Australia’s food security.

“It’s clear that penalties need to be more strictly applied and if possible, strengthened to properly deter people from such flagrant breaches of laws designed to keep our borders secure. There is too much at stake for the welfare of our animals, our environment and consumers and Australia’s economy,” Ms Andrae said.

“If African swine fever became endemic in Australia’s feral pig population it could cost as much as $2.4 billion. A small-scale outbreak in domestic pigs would cost our industry between $117 million and $263 million to manage and eradicate. The worst-case scenario, where ASF becomes endemic in our feral pig population, would cost the industry between $439 million and $2.54 billion over 30 years.”

Illegally importing pork and other meat products also risks exposing Australia to Foot-and-Mouth Disease and other unknown diseases and invasive species, APL said.

“FMD also has the potential to result in revenue losses of between $49.3 billion and $51.8 billion over 10 years, and is a risk to all cloven-hoofed animals.”

“Australia has a strong international reputation for high-quality, disease-free pork and other fresh meat. Breaching high biosecurity standards would jeapordise our well-earned trade reputation and access to international markets.”