Robbed at the border!

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redzed
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Robbed at the border!

Post by redzed » Mon Dec 01, 2014 06:27

After 2,830km and3.5 days of driving, including blinding torrential rains in Washington and Oregon, we are in Arizona! I loaded a large cooler full of salami, lonzino, Polish smoked sausage and about 15lbs of Kabanosy I made out of 50% wild boar meat and 50% regular pork. While crossing into the Excited States on Thanksgiving Day, the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agent asked me whether we had any fruits, vegetables, alcohol, tobacco or meats with us. I replied I had some sausages. He asked whether they were labelled, and I said they were by me, since I made them. They then proceeded to search the entire vehicle and when they got into the cooler they looked at my salami and asked what the meat content was. I told them they were made of pork. All of these were vac packed and they tossed them around. Then they saw the sausage sticks, and one of them became extremely interested, and asked what they were made of. "Pork", I replied. "What about the casings?" he enquired. "Sheep", I said. With that he grabbed them and said that they have to take them from me since sheep products are not allowed into the U.S. And then he grabbed two packs o Polish sausage and said that they have to take those as well.

So a whole days work and a waste of my precious boar meat! The guards must have had a good laugh while chewing on my suasages after we drove of. At least I took a pic of them after drying for 4 days.

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crustyo44
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Post by crustyo44 » Mon Dec 01, 2014 07:18

Red,
In Australia they would have confiscated the lot. You are lucky to have some left.
What makes me wonder is how Canadian and Danish pork is allowed to be imported here.
Cheers,
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Post by ursula » Mon Dec 01, 2014 10:53

Red, My heart bleeds! That's awful.
Let's hope they eat them all and their wives kick them out because they get too doughy and fat.
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Post by Butterbean » Mon Dec 01, 2014 15:23

I feel your pain.

I recently tried to send a deer mount to the UK. Boy was this fun. After six months of dealing with bureaucracy I finally understood the system and actually found someone who understood it in the government. Had to pay $100 to a Dept. of Ag inspector in the US and another $150 pounds to a Health Service person in the UK and neither required me to actually send them the mount so they could actually physically inspect them. Just when the check had cleared the bank and they found the time the inspection forms would be approved. Sortof like the tax on liquor making it safe.

Unfortunately, this didn't work either because the UK insisted that the taxidermist be a certified European Union taxidermist. Their solution was for me to send the mount to the only EU certified taxidermist they had on their list in the US and for him to re-tan the hide and redo the whole mount for a meager fee of $500 plus shipping and handling.

Seems rather puzzling when they take such concern over a deer mount yet allow people who have been working with Ebola patients free access into the country with little or no concern.

Red, its a good thing you didn't have lamb skin seats in your car else they surely would have torn these out ...... for safety and all.
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Post by Shuswap » Mon Dec 01, 2014 15:28

Red, bad story but thanks for the telling - my son's family in Columbus won't be getting any of my pepperoni when we visit later this month but the family in ON will be happy. What is rediculous is they would have no way of knowing the difference in casings just by looking - hands across the border - :evil:
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Post by Shuswap » Mon Dec 01, 2014 15:49

Red, reading this info sheet from US Customs & Border Patrol you are lucky to have anything left in your cooler:
https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/detail ... to-the-u.s.
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Post by redzed » Tue Dec 02, 2014 17:31

Butterbean that is a classic story of bureaucracy gone mad, public servants who have nothing better to do other than waste our tax dollars! It is they who now are in charge, or in other words, the servants have become the masters!

Phil, I had full right to bring in the sausages into the U.S. While meat products from most countries are not allowed, they are now allowed from Canada. What I was missing was some sort of documentation that the meat was actually from Canada. So if I had labels from the box meat that I used to make the sausage, They really had no case. And it's quite ironic since I bought the pork from Costco, and it was imported from the U.S.!

The importation of fresh, dried or canned meats or meat products is generally not allowed from most foreign countries into the United States. This includes products that have been prepared with meat. However, currently pork and poultry, which has proof of origin, from Canada is enterable. Not all Ruminant material can enter however personal use amounts of bovine meat or foods containing bovine meat or meat products (e.g., beef, veal, bison) are allowed in passenger baggage and mail, no import permit or other documentation is required. https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/detail ... rom-canada

They got me a technicality on the sheep casings, but really the guy just wanted those sausage sticks, I saw how his eyes lit up when he saw them.
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Post by Butterbean » Tue Dec 02, 2014 18:57

It is an abuse for sure. My MIL knew a guy who worked for customs in Miami and he would joke about taking stuff from people. People liked him because he always was handing out Cuban cigars.

Probably shouldn't post this on the net but I really don't cotton to some of the government nonsense but to show how stupid some of these rules are consider I am a vile villain. A cretin if you will. Reason I say this is I sponsored the first annual Ramadan BBQ in 2010 in southern Afghanistan.

Its odd how we can send our young men to Afghanistan to take up the slack for failed diplomacy and expect our boys to make sacrifices yet they are not allowed to eat pork for fear that we will offend the people who are trying to kill us. This really bothered me after tasting some of the new politically correct vegan MRE's. It made my blood boil so I set out to do something about it thinking the delicious aroma of pork ribs hadn't caressed the mountains of Afghanistan since Alexander's last visit to the region. Being a cretin and unamercian and all, I took it upon myself to remedy this travesty and prepared some MRE's that I thought were suitable for our boys. After a few phone calls to a few other cretins I know in the service I shipped this team what I thought they deserved.

Here are my happy campers.

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The contraband consisted of four cases of pecan smoked pork spare ribs and a few other delicacies. The guys said it was the best meal they had eaten since their deployment. Unfortunately they are not all with us anymore but at least they enjoyed a good meal and they knew there were cretins like myself who had them in their minds. I just hope I didn't piss Hillary off too much. Its a sad day when you have to break the law to be patriotic.

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This was a test packet I broke into for sampling. It was pull off the bone tender and tasted like it just left the smoker. I was well pleased to say the least.

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Post by Shuswap » Tue Dec 02, 2014 19:10

Outstanding :!:
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Post by crustyo44 » Tue Dec 02, 2014 20:01

Marvelous!!!!!!!!
I would like to write something as well but if I do, I might get every damn government department on my doorstep here as my post might offend somebody somewhere and WE must be politically correct!!!!!!!!! :oops:
Merry Christmas to all members.
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Post by trucktramp » Wed Dec 03, 2014 18:17

OFS Butterbean...OFS. You are a true patriot and hero to those who are placed in harms way. I salute you sir.
I believe in moderation in everything...including moderation
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Post by markjass » Sat Dec 06, 2014 10:45

I am glad they did not empty your wallet as well (fine). I have a story to tell, but I do not want to drop anyone in the sh%, nor do know what the statue of limitations is for the crime, it may have been legal, of importing best quality, and I mean best quality, vac packed steak into in the bottom of their suitcase into the UK is. They did not sell it exactly, wink, wink, nudge, nudge, say no more!
Do no harm. Margerine is the biggest food crime
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