US Customs seize giraffe feces at Minnesota airport from woman who wanted to make jewelry with it

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• During an inspection at the Minneapolis-Saint Paul Airport, customs agents found giraffe feces a woman picked up during a trip to Kenya.
• The woman, from Iowa, said she planned to use the feces to make a necklace, a process she has done in the past with moose poop.
• The agency destroyed the fecal matter as it may carry diseases that could spread to people who touch the jewelry.

Federal customs agents pooh-poohed the plans of an Iowa woman who wanted to make jewelry from giraffe feces she picked up on a trip to Kenya and brought back to the U.S. in her luggage.

The woman declared the small box of feces when she was selected to have her belongings inspected upon arriving at the Minneapolis-Saint Paul Airport on Sept. 29, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

The woman, who was not identified, told officials she planned to use the waste to make a necklace, as she had done in the past with moose poop.

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A small box of giraffe feces gets confiscated from a passenger arriving from Kenya at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, on Sept. 29, 2023.   (U.S. Customs and Border Protection via AP)

Giraffe poop can be brought back to the U.S. with the proper permits and inspections, according to Minnesota Public Radio. The station reported that the woman won't face sanctions because she declared the feces and gave it to Customs.

The agency’s agriculture specialists destroyed the giraffe poop.

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"There is a real danger with bringing fecal matter into the U.S.," Customs and Border Protection's Chicago field Director LaFonda D. Sutton-Burke said in a statement. "If this person had entered the U.S. and had not declared these items, there is high possibility a person could have contracted a disease from this jewelry and developed serious health issues."

African swine fever, classical swine fever, Newcastle disease, foot-and-mouth disease and swine vesicular disease are among ailments in Kenya that Customs cited as risks.