To most people, the list of things you can’t carry through a border checkpoint is pretty well known – drugs, illegal immigrants, weapons, bomb making parts and any number of other terror related items. But a recent incident at Canadian checkpoint should help as a reminder to keep dangerous chocolate eggs out of the country as well.
The eggs in question are Kinder Surprise chocolate eggs – banned in the U.S. because they contain a small toy that poses a choking hazard. Never mind that I grew up on these things back in Europe, and that the rest of the world has no problem selling them – our almighty government considers the eggs enough of a threat that they confiscated 25,000 of them in 2,000 border incidents last year. Awesome way to use all those expensive border resources.
When Lind Bird tried to enter the U.S. from Canada, the Winnipeg woman came face to face with a customs official who discovered her illegal egg. The egg was seized, and Ms. Bird received a 7 page letter from the government asking for authorization to destroy it. Of course, she can also opt to pay $250 and contest the seizure.
Lets all be grateful that our government is hard at work protecting us from the dangers of these chocolate eggs. Oh, and if you happen to have a decent international grocery store in the area, ask them where they stash their Kinder Surprise eggs – that is where I get mine…
[Photo from: Flickr/brandoncripps]