Decorations made of straw - is it legal to import?

ShayNanigan

A silly thing that never crossed my mind until I was about to order some Christmas ornaments from another EU country. The ornaments are made of straw. Apparently there's some limitations when importing hay or straw products into Ireland but I thought it would not apply to EU countries and also that it only meant products that are imported for animal feed or other agricultural purposes. The store only mentioned customers from Australia needing to check if they are allowed to import such goods but as this is an island too, thought I'd check.

I cannot find a mention anywhere whether these kind of unimportant decorative items are prohibited or allowed. I have seen similar being sold here in the previous years but not this year and it could be different for businesses compared to consumers. Just want to make sure before I order that the products allowed into Ireland. Does anyone know?

Victor

You could check with the Department of Agriculture. Point them to the website or give them screenshots.

Also consider the fire risk.

Rusheseverywhere

Technical meant to be inspected in reality not. Straw and Hay not under EU free market but national gov set own rules still as they are non harmonized products. Now what the story is once worked a grey area.

https://www.agriland.ie/farming-news/dafm-rules-for-importing-hay-and-straw-this-winter/

https://www.gov.ie/en/press-release/c2cfc-import-requirements-for-hay-and-straw/

Oz and NZ very strict and rightly so when you see Ash Die back etc.