If you eat it, it is hard to see why you wouldn't call it food...

Customs can be quite severe here.. and AQIS (the Australian Quarantine Inspection Service) can be extremely "intrusive" in some peoples view... but remember please that this Island continent of ours remains free of many nasty diseases endemic in other parts of the world... rabies and foot & mouth being two fine examples...

There is a local television series that has had a run of a few seasons... it is filmed at Sydney airport and shows the sort of things people try to bring (or mail) into the country... Unbelievable!!

One quote from the show(that the OP can probably relate to) .. an incoming passenger with a suitcase chock full of edible items (who naturally had NOT declared any "food" items on her entry form) .. when challenged insisted .. "IS not food... Is snack!"

A distinction which I must say completely escapes me!

Those folks take their jobs seriously.. and as a local I can only applaud that... and it would take a hard heart not to be charmed by the sight of the AQIS Beagles in their little maroon coats trotting around sniffing away....

A long as they don't "indicate" my bags to their handlers of course!!!

I have had one or two pretty nasty (hidebound/borderline rude) Customs agents on arrival back home - they are mostly quite pleasant or at least polite... and as that mirrors my experience with the TSA - no notably poor experiences with them either.. I'd have to say, IME, it's all pretty much the same...