How much hassle is it to bring food into the US?
I'm travelling to the US on business in a month or two. I'd like to bring some British chocolate as a gift for the people I'll be meeting.
As I understand it, pre-packaged, commercially-produced chocolate should be fine to bring in, provided I declare it on the CBP form.
My question is simply how much of a delay, if any, should I expect from doing this? Is it a simple case of showing the agent the food, or is it likely that I'd be sent for further inspection? I'm travelling with a colleague, so if it's likely I'd be held up for a while, I probably won't bring food at all.
Best Answer
When you declare the chocolates you will likely be sent to agricultural inspection. However, at least at the time we typically arrive, this is very short. Your bags go through an x-ray, they may ask you to open some of them so they can look at anything the x-ray picked out as being of possible interest. I don't believe it has ever added even 10 minutes to the process.
We normally save a bit of hassle by ensuring everything that might draw the x-ray's eye is in one bag, this limits the amount of unpacking needed. In our experience the x-ray notes things which are organic in nature and have a density in the ballpark of water.
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Can you take packaged food into usa?
Food Products (Raw and Prepared) As a general rule, condiments, vinegars, oils, packaged spices, honey, coffee and tea are admissible. Because rice can often harbor insects, it is best to avoid bringing it into the United States.What food Cannot be taken into us?
Meat, milk, egg, poultry, and their products, including products made with these materials are either prohibited or restricted from entering the United States.What foods are not allowed to cross the US border?
Cooked eggs and foods such as breakfast tacos, egg plates and hard boiled eggs are prohibited. The regulations governing meat and meat products are stringent. You may not import fresh, dried or canned meats or meat products or foods that have been prepared with meat.Can I bring packaged meat into the us?
No. The United State Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Meat and Animal Products Regulations prohibit travelers from bringing in fresh, dried, and canned meats, dehydrated soup mixes, and meat products from most foreign countries. If any meat is used in preparing a product, it is prohibited.How To Import Organic Food Into the US
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Answer 2
[This assumes your business is not to sell chocolates]
You will need to list the chocolates you plan to gift on your customs declaration, with an estimated value, and if your total (with all other things you plan to leave in the US) is over the limit, you will have to pay customs duty, which will take some time.
If you are below the limits (about 400$, not sure what the latest value is), nobody cares, and you just walk by; delay is zero seconds.
However, you could always get picked for a random searching. From my experience, bringing chocolate doesn't affect this positively or negatively.
Packaged chocolates have no other limit (aside from your luggage weight limits), and count as 'food'. Note that liquor-filled chocolates are quite a different topic!
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