Fish tongue-eating parasites, contaminated foodstuffs and smuggled goat meat are all in a day's work for the team tasked with checking imports at the UK's biggest container port.
Suffolk Coastal Port Health Authority (SCPHA) consists of a crack team whose job it is to ensure that sub-standard foods and animal-related goods don't make it through the ports of Felixstowe, Ipswich and Harwich.
The 130-strong workforce - based at the Port of Felixstowe - is headed up by port health manager Richard Jacobs - a man who has seen it all in his 32 years in the job.
The team is part of the environmental health services at East Suffolk Council but as the Port of Felixstowe is huge - and the other two ports also sizeable - it takes a dedicated operation to deal with the sheer volume of work.
"It's very significant because of the nature of the goods. It's a 24/7 port. Foodstuffs arrive in big quantities," explains Richard. "The past few years have been quite intense. We monitor the vessels arriving. The vessel has to notify of any disease on board."
Covid and the lockdown period was particularly challenging as the team also has a responsibilities around crew health - and ensuring that human as well as animal disease isn't brought into the country.
"There was an increase in checks - we had to do more monitoring. There were incidents of outbreaks - and that was on top of our usual checks," he says.
His department works closely with the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA - formerly Public Health England) to ensure diseases are controlled and with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA).
The SCPHA has existed in its present form since 1981, and checks more than 80,000 consignments every year. There's a requirement for each vessel that enters to be free of disease, and the master of the ship must make a declaration by exception - although it used to be that every vessel declared on arrival.
With seven ferry sailings a day and 3,000 deep sea vessels a year coming in, the work is non-stop. Vessels also need a six-yearly sanitation certificate which his team will carry out.
"There's about 2m containers a year that arrive in Felixstowe so it's quite significant," he says.
Consignments may require a document check or a physical one and the team will focus on identifying where there might be areas of concern that require further investigation. They'll look at the high risk areas in particular, where there are known contaminants or toxins or issues around the world. They might test seafood and shellfish for food poisoning, for example.
Some analysis can be carried out within 24 hours - others might take a week. Staff will act on intelligence and also on past experience of where there are issues.
Insects, spiders, and - very occasionally - snakes are among the species which can sneak into consignments - and there can also be problems such as mould which develop during the journey.
"There's a whole raft of issues," says Richard. "I have seen most things - but the world of food never stands still. There are different products coming to market."
These days there's much more awareness of food hygiene and standards have risen, he adds.
The team is funded through a fee which is paid on imported goods. Trade has expanded dramatically since Richard started all those years ago, and with it the size of the SCPHA team.
They still get a few nasty surprises, he says, including a recent consignment which contained parasites which sever and take the place of fish tongues. These were discovered in an import of seabream at the Port of Felixstowe and sent back to the country of origin.
Another unusual find recently was a Giant River Prawn at the Port of Felixstowe which had 16-inch limbs. However, it passed the SCPHA health test with flying colours.
Among the items which clearly didn't make the grade over the years have been organic honey contaminated with the inner tube from a bicycle tyre, unpacked tuna which froze into a solid block and illegal goat meat hidden in frozen vegetables.
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