450 Mexican Pork Meat Tamales Confiscated And Importer Fined $1K In Los Angeles Airport

A passenger from Mexico declared 450 tamales to U.S. Customs and was later fined.

By H. Nelson Goodson

Hispanic News Network U.S.A.

November 19, 2015

Los Angeles, CA - The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agriculture specialists assigned to the Los Angeles International Airport on November 2 seized 450 Mexican pork meat tamales from a passenger who declared the food in his luggage. The passenger was asked if the tamales has any pork meat and the passenger responded no. Once the tamales were determined to have been made with pork meat, they were confiscated and later destroyed. 

"Although tamales are a popular holiday tradition, foreign meat products can carry serious animal diseases from countries affected by outbreaks of Avian Influenza, Mad Cow and Swine Fever," said Anne Maricich, CBP Acting Director of Field Operations in Los Angeles. "Every day CBP agriculture specialists prevent the intentional and unintentional introduction of harmful pests and foreign animal diseases into the U.S."
The traveler was assessed a $1,000.00 civil penalty for commercial activity with the intent to distribute. The pork meat tamales were seized and destroyed under CBP supervision, according to Maricich.