FlyerTalk Forums - View Single Post - $300 US Customs Fine for Undeclared Food?
Old Dec 3, 2009 | 5:37 pm
  #13  
Loren Pechtel
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Originally Posted by pinkcat
Just be glad you werent going into Australia, they dont want you to bring in wooden pencils or hairbrushes in case they have something that could affect their native species which is fair enough, I am not complaining about that, its just much stricter than UK-US controls. CBP seem ok with the constant stream of chocolate flowing Westwards and the flow of Smores flavour Pop tarts in the other direction when my son flies
Yeah. It's meat and fruit they hate. They do get a bit obsessive about it, though--cooked meat isn't going to be a danger but that would introduce borderline cases. (I do think they should allow sealed tins and jars, though--how could those carry anything??)

I've seen the woman in front of us get in trouble over meat. She had a whole bunch of it in her bag but the official was after her about "concealment"--something I don't believe she did. Her "concealment" was stuff stuffed inside a shoe--but if you're going to pack a shoe it makes sense to stuff *SOMETHING* inside to keep it from being squashed, not to mention to use the space. Since it was also stuck elsewhere in her bag I don't believe there was any intent. I never found out how big the fine was.
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