A SCOTTISH man living in Bantry, who was preparing to celebrate his country’s Burns Night in January, was shocked to find his cherished haggis had been impounded by Customs in Dublin.
Retired veterinary surgeon Ian Stretch and his wife Jeannie have now launched a campaign to ‘free the haggis’, having been forced to replace the traditional Scottish dish with Clonakilty blackpudding instead.
The department described the Scottish dish as 'dog food.'
Ian and Jeannie had arranged for three haggis puddings to be delivered to their home in Bantry in time for the annual festivities.
But just days before the famous Burns Night celebrations on January 25th, the couple were informed in writing by the Department of Agriculture that their haggises had been categorised as ‘dog food’ and were being held in Dublin.
‘This compounded our disappointment with the failed delivery, as this was an insult to our national dish,’ Ian told The Southern Star.
The couple had no choice but to find a substitute.
‘Jeannie suggested Clonakilty Blackpudding, while I suggested that the Clonakilty Whitepudding was nearer in colour to that of the Haggis,’ said Ian.
A mixture of the two was even considered but, in the end, they settled for the black.
They covered it with a generous amount of traditional vegetables, consisting of ‘chappit tatties’ and mashed turnip, partly to disguise the West Cork ‘impostor’.
‘Our Scottish guests were not convinced by this subterfuge and needed several wee drams to assuage their disappointment,’ said Ian, who also astutely observed that Robert Burns – the poet who was the subject of the celebration – was himself a tax collector.
‘He would turn in his grave if he were aware that his present-day colleagues had imprisoned the subject of his most famous poem!’ asserted Ian.
Meanwhile, the retired vet expressed concern that the banning of the aforementioned haggises could have further international consequences – such as the closing of embassies, or maybe even a trade war.
‘As a Scotsman, I feel that something must be done to free these haggises and to prevent an international incident,’ he suggested.
Before going to press, The Southern Star asked the Department of Agriculture for a comment about the impounded puddings.
