Hard Cheese in Luggage

[Sharon J]

On our last trip from Italy, my husband had packed some aged packaged Pecorino cheese to bring home in his carry on luggage. We had no problem, until we landed in Atlanta, and had to collect all of our luggage for customs. as I was waiting for him to collect everything from the arrival belt, the cute Beagle kept stopping to sniff his bag. I told the handler what he was smelling, and she said there was no problem, and didn't even ask to look at it. As we were walking back to recheck our bags, we were pulled out of line and sent off for further inspection. They also said, there was no problem, as we spoke to them and they scanned our bags. We did notice that others were being pulled out as well.

Just thought I would get some advice from all of you. Is it okay to bring back cheese in our carry bags? Of course, we would never bring anything back that needed refrigeration. Many times, we have the cheese in our rental apartment, and don't want to leave the leftovers behind.

Thanks. Sharon

 

[Ian Sutton]

Hi Sharon
It depends on the country, into the UK it's fine from Europe (I've also brought soft smoked mozzarella and burrata back before). I've a vague recollection that it's meant to be vacuum sealed for the US, but hopefully others will chime in.

I usually take some tupperware away with us, which as well as stopping such foods getting bashed, also has decent insulation to keep things cool. I've even taken freezer blocks away before, but don't bother if the weather isn't too hot.

regards
Ian

 

[Footnotes]

Hi Sharon
It depends on the country, into the UK it's fine from Europe (I've also brought soft smoked mozzarella and burrata back before). I've a vague recollection that it's meant to be vacuum sealed for the US, but hopefully others will chime in.

I usually take some tupperware away with us, which as well as stopping such foods getting bashed, also has decent insulation to keep things cool. I've even taken freezer blocks away before, but don't bother if the weather isn't too hot.

regards
Ian

I have brought back 8 inch wheels of pecorino cheese twice into Dulles International without a problem. It was vacuum packed.

Pat

 

[Karen Frerichs]

I just googled this:

http://apps.tsa.dhs.gov/mytsa/cib_results.aspx?search=cheese

because I had thought only vacuum-sealed was allowed, but then I thought about sandwiches, etc that might still be in a carry-on (plus, I sometimes stash those little cheese cubes that come on meal trays to save for later); never had a problem.
So officially OK, but I can see why the beagle was curious... what about a couple of zip-lock bags for those kind of things? Might save being pulled out of the line. Or, Tupperware, as Ian does.

 

[Alpinista]

We bring back hard cheeses every year and have never had a problem, even with the cute dogs at Dulles. We pack in multiple zip-locks to try to hold down the odor (although the cheese probably smells better than the dirty clothes we wrap around it).

 

[Fedina]

We always bring back hard cheeses and have never had a problem either. But, we always vacuum seal them, which the cheese shops always seem prepared to do, without charge. The only time we have had a problem with the cute beagle in Boston was when my son left a half eaten sandwich in my carryon! Always bring zip locks too.

 

[Tony da Roma]

For entering the USA, as long as it is a hard cheese and it is vacuum sealed you are completely fine.