From April 2025, the UK government has temporarily banned holidaymakers from bringing back EU cheese and meat products to try to prevent the spread of foot and mouth disease.
UK tourists face £5,000 fines for bringing 11 items back from France
UK tourists have been warned bringing back nearly a dozen items from France is now banned. From April 2025, the UK government has temporarily banned holidaymakers from bringing back EU cheese and meat products to try to prevent the spread of foot and mouth disease.
Ripe Motorhome Insurance has collated what travellers can and can’t bring back to the UK and what you can plan to bring into the European Union. Travellers will need to know what they can and can’t bring back into the UK from their time in France so they can declare the products correctly and enable the border forces to seize and destroy the products accordingly.
If travellers don’t declare the banned products, they could risk prosecution. Fish, some types of poultry, specifically chicken, goose, or duck or any products containing these meats and products from these animals (such as eggs) are OK.
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But beef, pork, goat, lamb, mutton, venison, any product containing these meats, butter, cheese, and yoghurt, products not for human consumption that contain any of these meats (such as pet food) are banned.
You can bring any fruit and vegetables into France that are grown originally within the EU, provided they are free from any pests or disease. You can also bring in processed foods, chocolates or other confectionery, but they must not have any meat or dairy ingredients.
Alan Thomas, CEO of Ripe at Ripe Motorhome Insurance comments on the risk of £5k fines for Brits: “Our handy guide for holidaygoers on what to not bring back from France will save unnecessary delays in returning home in your motorhome.
“As the bans are only temporary, travellers should check before setting off what they can bring back to ensure the UK isn’t currently affected by foot and mouth disease in the EU.”
There’s more information on the foods you can bring into the UK on the Ripe Motorhome Insurance website.