Food & Immigration
 

Can you bring dried or uncooked beans and saffron from Spain to the United States?

Thank you.

With respect to you and all who may have an answer and opinion.

I would not be accepting any information on here. You surely should be checking with the U.S. government agency responsible, which last time I knew it, was called U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Yes, definitely.

Yes, these items are ok.

The real answer is it depends. And the regulations can change in a moment depending on current conditions. You should be well aware of the information on https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/det.../600/related/1 and in the APHIS database.

Yes, both are allowable.

Thnak you. I did check the Customs website, but like everything else in the world, there are the written rules and the practical application.

I brought back dried lentils, dried habas, dried garbanzos, and a lot of saffron in June 2010. Not that you asked, but I also brought in a lot of cheese. Absolutely no problem.
Have a great trip. Laurie

Aduchamp - We did bring back some dried beans / we wanted to bring some Iberian ham / vacuum sealed but that was not allowable.

I never thought about Saffron. Great idea.

We always bring back at least a kilo of beans (Alubias de Tolosa, Gernikas, Alubias de Rioja Alavesa, Fabas de la Granja). I'd bring back more, but then I'd have to toss out the dirty clothes, or buy another bag. Some of the Tolosa and Fabada beans sell for over $30/lb at home.

Ali-oli (Arte Oliva) is also worth bringing back unless you like to make it from scratch.

Don't forget the great olive oils that are not available at home, Alfar La Maja (Navarra) is one of the best and Aubocassa (Mallorca) is worth the money.

You can also bring back cans or jars of Bonito del Norte in your checked luggage. A great delicacy for the price!

We won't talk about bringing in a little jamón every now and then, but it happens.

Every time I think of bringing glass jars of Bonito del Norte, I remember the time I bought about 8 jars in Galicia, and one of them broke in my carry on (dating the story here), leaving a trail of olive oil from one end of the Santander airport to another...now I stick to the cans of ventresca!