US to lift 21-year ban on haggis

Burns' night boost for famous Scottish dish that fell victim to BSE fears

Haggis and its traditional accompaniment, whiskey. Haggis was banned by US authorities in 1989 because they feared its main ingredient - minced sheep offal - could prove lethal. Photograph: Marco Secchi/Getty Images

After 21 years in exile, the haggis is to be allowed back into the United States. The "great chieftan o' the puddin-race" was one of earliest casualties of the BSE crisis of the 1980s-90s, banned on health grounds by the US authorities in 1989 because they feared its main ingredient ‑ minced sheep offal ‑ could prove lethal.