Foods you can eat whenever but are banned in parts of the world

You know where you cannot freely squeeze ketchup onto your French fries? France.

There are many wonderful things about living in New Zealand. We have incredible scenery, incredible wildlife, we're one of the least corrupt countries on Earth, we have Lorde (a national treasure) and things like chocolate milk aren't illegal.

This isn't the case everywhere else in the world, though, so let's raise a glass of the full-fat stuff and feel even better about ourselves by looking at a list of things New Zealanders can purchase but that are banned in other parts of the world.

1. Chocolate milk

Schools in San Francisco, US, are not allowed to sell chocolate milk, due to health regulations that came into place last year. This applies to elementary, middle and high schools.

2. Kinder Surprise Eggs

You know the delight of buying a Kinder Surprise Egg and getting both a chocolate treat and a tiny choking haza... sorry, toy? Lucky you. American kids don't. In the US, you can get a Kinder Joy which is a weird variation of the Kinder Surprise, packaged in two halves, one containing the chocolate, the other containing the toy.

3. Chewing gum

If you happen to be travelling through Singapore and find an old piece of chewing gum in your bag, please don't put it in your mouth. Unless, of course, you're fine with having a criminal record in a foreign country, which is a possibility.

4. M&Ms

Sweden, the home of Ikea and its weird but wonderful meatballs, has no M&Ms so take it into consideration when you're thinking of a holiday in Scandinavia. This is because, back in 2016, a Swedish country ruled against the M&Ms manufacturer in a trademark dispute as Mondelez was already in the country selling a similar chocolate treat with an "m" on the packaging.

5. Samosas

Here's a fun fact that might come in handy at your next pub quiz: you can't buy samosas in Southern Somalia. This is because Al-Shabab, the Islamic group that controls most of the country, has deemed these a health concern, following accusations that some traders were making them out of cat meat. Other reports also state the ban could be related to Al-Shabab considering samosas to be "too Western" which is not something you often hear about samosas.

6. Foie gras

The production of foie gras has been banned in several countries around the globe as the method that goes into creating the fancy French delicacy involves force feeding geese and ducks. For that reason, the list of countries where making foie gras is banned includes the UK, Italy, Germany, Finland, Poland, Turkey, and others.

7. Beluga caviar

Beluga sturgeon is a threatened species and, as such, the US has banned all imports of the caviar.

8. Haggis

The Scottish delicacy made of sheep's heart, liver and lungs is illegal in the US, as the country has a ruling against eating livestock's lungs. It has been illegal since 1971 and the Scottish government reportedly has not given up trying to change the US ruling.

9. Ketchup

Ketchup is pretty tightly regulated in French schools where, of all places, chips (I mean... FRENCH fries) can only be served once a week.

10. Raw almonds

In California, a 2007 rule means almond suppliers must use heat-pasteurisation or fumigation to stop food-borne illnesses. Farmers can sell raw almonds in small batches but, strictly speaking, a raw almond in California isn't actually raw.