I am putting this post first in the Canada forum for help and then
if no one can answer part two I will ask that particular question in
the travel security thread.
My all time favorite pickles are madeby the Strub family. I used
to buy them by the box from the local distributor in Los Angeles.
On the occasion of my upcoming YVR visit I am wondering if Strub's
pickles are available at local Vancouver/Richmond supermarkets or
even Costco? Part two then is the question if TSA or whatever the
local screening auhority is in Canada look at a pickle jar as prohibited
liquids or will let them pass for my return flight to Tokyo? I would
prefer to handcarry a glass jar instead of packing it in check-in
luggage, even if I try to cushion it with all sorts of things.

Don't even think about it. The screeners will view your jar of pickles as a jar of individual mini-bomblets immersed in a solution that will explode when exposed to air.

That's the kind of hysteria the hardline "law and order" types have dictated upon us. Enjoy your freedumbs, nothing to see here move along.

I thought so Now back to the question, will I be able to buy my Strub's
in Vancouver?

Strub's are made in Dundas Ontario. They come as half or full sour. They don't usually sell far out of the province. You can contact the Vancouver supermarket in the neighborhood and ask. To get an address try Google Maps. Mrs. Whyte's pickles from Montreal are usually better and she's fearless about sending them out of town. Just pack them in your luggage. Better yet, learn to make them yourself. Get some pickling cukes and soak them in salt water over night. Then change the salt water, add a lot of peeled garlic, some dried chilies, whole pepper corns and bay leaves. Fill the jar to the top and put a lid on loosely. Keep them in a basin in a cool place (not a fridge). They will be ready in a few days and you don't have to travel.

Strubs' says they are available at all the usual grocery stores, Overwaitea, Safeway, Coop, IGA, RCSS

Not Costco out west

If it's been a while since you have had them you may be a little disappointed. They moved from Dundas to Brantford and built a new factory about a decade ago and the pickles haven't quite the same since. They're still good but there's something missing.

According to their website the answer is yes

http://www.strubpickles.com/

Click on Find Product

I love Strub's Kosher Dills but anybody who gets in a car with you will smell them on your breath.

Of course you could get the pickled eggs as well to enhance the experience.

Strubs has a refrigerated line with the live stuff, which is what you want. They also sell a pasteurized non-refrigerated line that is of no interest. You might as well by No Name real kosher dills - which are about as unreal as you can imagine. So it's not just whether they're in the store, are they in the fridge?

Well, to all of you my deepest appreciation for all the valuable
advice. I will see what and where I can find it and how I best
stow it in the luggage minimizing breakage with the aim of course
to eliminate that potential disaster.
Next I will look for Freybe meats and sausages, get some back
bacon, load up on maple syrup and voila, my Canada trip will be
quite memorable. For me it's all with the food(s).

The US will ask you on a card if you are brining in such things, inspect and maybe seize them. They took my sandwich at pre-clearance. You can thank the Bush administration for protecting your farms from diseases that you are bringing in by eating a sandwich, or stocking your freezer. You might to have a label stating that it's pork - beef is what they usually try to stop even though that restriction has been removed.

We live in Japan, thank heaven, and go for food shopping trips every three months. Although we are not altogether sure, what is allowed and what not, we have yet to experience any trouble and hope it stays that way. But thanks for the warning.

Forgot to mention that because of the theatrics at U.S. POE we
don't even consider traveling thru the U.S. anymore. Just a simple
thing, like a transit, which in every other country ( don't know about
Canada, though ) is a piece of cake, is just a horrendous experience
in the U.S. I now go South America thru Mexico, and to Canada non-stop,
although trips thru the U.S. are sometimes considerably cheaper.
We love Canada and want to explore ways how we can stay in
Vancouver for part of the year, the other part in Europe and Japan.
So I will want to check with some Immigration office during the
upcoming trip what and if they do have some sort of retirement visa.

If you're interested, Victoria is the retirement capital. As I understand it, if you are not intending to be an immigrant, then a regular visitor's visa will do. You have to ask upon entry each time about the stay allowed but there are no retirement visas. It has to do with health care. On the other hand, if you apply and are admitted as an immigrant, you are entitled to medical care with no charge but you would have to file income taxes. Check with the Canadian embassy in Tokyo or consulate elsewhere in Japan when you get home. You can then use your Aeroplan points.

Good advice. We are seriously considering this and yes, will contact the
Canadian Embassy upon our return. I guess I should begin to look closer
into the Aeroplan thread. Thanks.

Deleted - I see the OP is in Japan so I assume he's tried lots of Japanese pickles already.

That's a great idea. Can't get pickling cukes in Japan, but I saw them a
couple of weeks ago in BKK. We'll have to bring a load back then next time
or start growing them in my garden here, if I find a seed package in Canada
next week.