Rhonda Anderson > wrote in
.5:

> "jmcquown" > wrote in
> :
>
>>
>> You may if you wish
>>
>> Did I ever tell you I tried to send the 3 minute grits to Australia?
>> I paid about a dollar USD for the one pound box of white grits. I
>> paid about $11 to ship it. When it got to Australia they
>> quarrantined it because it was a grain product.
>
> Not all grain products are prohibited/restricted, but corn grits are.
>
> They told the woman it would cost
>> $40 to get it out of quarrantine. She declined and wrote me a very
>> nice letter explaining why she couldn't afford a $40 box of grits.
>
> The fee would have been to return the product to the sender, not get
> it out of quarantine (so covers handling, postage etc). The only way
> to import grits in to Australia is with an import permit - an involved
> and expensive process, which an individual wouldn't want to go through
> for one box of grits.
>>
>> All in all, that was the most expensive box of grits I've ever
>> purchased, and the guys in customs probably tried them. LOL
>
> If you want to send anything to someone here that's of plant, animal
> or microbial origin <g> (so a lot of foodstuffs) it's best to check
> the conditions first to save disappointment. You can always ask me if
> you like - happy to help.
>
> Customs and quarantine are completely separate departments here,
> though, and the guys in Customs are unlikely to have even looked at
> the grits, other than when the parcel went through the x-ray. As far
> as anyone trying them - I know you're just making a joke, but it gets
> really tiresome when people accuse you of eating their food. We do see
> some nice looking food when we're inspecting parcels, especially at
> Christmas time, but most of the food we see I wouldn't want to try!
> even if it wasn't worth more than my job is worth.
>
> Saw a block of Hershey's chocolate in a parcel the other day - a 5lb
> (2.27kg) block!


I remember arriving in Sydney. They x-rayed a large canvas bag and saw
some heavy duty knee-high rubber boots. They unzipped the bag asking me
if they were used on a farm in America. I said no, they're brand new.
"OK" they said and saw 60 tins of kipper snacks that I had jammed into
the boots and laying everywhere. They examined one tin and asked why all
the kipper snacks. I replied "We're going into the outback and that's my
diet for the next 30 days." They smiled and wished me luck. I asked if
they sold Saltines in Australia and they nodded, laughing at me adding
"and kipper snacks!" I could hear them laughing as I made my way to the
gate for the next flight to Canberra. That story probably made the rounds
that day! I had to laugh at myself too! That bag was HEAVY!

I do remember being amazed that the same products I find in the US
supermarkets were in the Australian supermarkets, but they had no
poisonous additives or preservatives. All natural stuff. That was great!

Andy