Originally Posted by
NZ_Flyer
They aren't brought into the country. The apples are loaded by caterers at, say, LAX and are handed to pax over international waters and airspace on foreign carriers. Technically speaking, a pax is not in NZ until they are through immigration. The Government has no right (whether legally or morally) to tell foreign airlines what they can and can't serve on board. But they do have the right to tell people entering NZ what they can and cannot bring into the country.
So insects go through customs & immigration? How civilized of them.
If a government has no right to tell airlines not to bring apples to one side of a line existing only in the law, what right does it have to tell citizens and visitors not to bring them the extra few meters?
A government has the right the dictate what is carried into their country. If NZ really thought apples were a threat, it would tell airlines not to bring them (either that or their leadership is living in a dream world where flies have passports).