HOW TO PLAN YOUR FOOD STRATEGY ON YOUR THRU-HIKE IN THE USA

Let me start this with, I got really lucky at LAX customs. I flew into the USA with a ridiculous amount of snacks I brought over from home, and about 110 homemade dehydrated meals. I waltzed off the plane, collected my bags, and walked through the doors onto the main arrivals floor and didn’t speak to a single customs officer. I doubt this is a usual experience. This was not for lack of trying, I had honestly filled out my customs declaration and was very ready to plead my case to customs officials, waving around my book on the Pacific Crest Trail.

I did a lot of research before I arrived in the USA about what food I could lawfully bring into the country. This meant a lot of time emailing and calling the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). It also meant reading every obscure regulation that controlled the importation of food into the USA. This was, and still is (I checked again) a very unclear and frustrating process. The regulations have actually been updated sine I thru-hiked the Pacific Crest Trail, and if you can believe it, the whole thing might be even less clear than it was before. The USDA website is a bit of nightmare to navigate and doesn’t really address the importation of freeze-fried or dehydrated hiking food in any specific way.

Here is what I learned from reading, emailing, and actually going there with all my imported food.

Food That Is Generally Allowed In

CBP has a vaguely helpful list on its website that includes the following food items that are generally allowed into the USA for personal use:

• Condiments – ketchup (catsup), mustard, mayonnaise, Marmite and Vegemite and prepared sauces that do not contain meat products
• Olive oil and other vegetable oils
• Bread, cookies, crackers, cakes, granola bars, cereal and other baked and processed products
• Candy and chocolate
• Cheese – solid cheese that does not contain meat are admissible
• Liquid milk and milk products intended for use by infants or very young children are admissible if in a reasonable amount or small quantity for several days
• Juices – Commercially packaged
• Tea – Commercially packaged and ready to be boiled, steeped or microwaved in liquid. Coca, barberry and loose citrus leaves are prohibited
• Spices – most dried spices are allowed except for orange, lemon, lime and other citrus leaves and seeds, lemongrass, and many vegetable and fruit seeds
• Noodles and ramen that do not have animal products in the ingredients
• Flour
• Mushrooms – fresh, dried and above the ground parts that are clean and free of soil
• Nuts – Roasted
• Bakery items, candy, chocolate, and dry mixes containing dairy and egg ingredients commercially labelled and presented in final finished packaging are generally admissible

Food That Is Generally Not Allowed In

Fresh meat/meat from certain countries

USDA does not allow travellers to bring back most cattle, swine, sheep or goat meat or meat products from countries affected with certain serious livestock diseases:

• Foot-and-mouth disease
• Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE)
• Swine vesicular disease
• Classical swine fever
• African swine fever

If your home country has these diseases, which you can check on the USDA website, abandon.

There is a possible exemption for some shelf-stable meat. 

In addition to this, the USDA states “Travelers may bring back boneless meat in commercially packaged, labelled, and contained in unopened hermetically sealed containers or packages that are cooked by a commercial method after such packing to produce articles that are shelf-stable without refrigeration.”

Fruit and Vegetables

In short, almost all fresh or frozen fruit and vegetables are out. No dice. Too many little pests.

There is a possible exemption for some shelf-stable fruits and vegetables. 

But the USDA states “Travelers may bring commercially canned fruits and vegetables into the United States as long as you declare them on your U.S. Customs form.” Which I think may also apply to commercially freeze-dried or dehydrated and labelled fruits and vegetables, but I can’t confirm it, and trust me I tried. There is certainly an argument to be made.  

Key Takeaways

• The USDA and CBP are not overly concerned with anything that is shelf stable, sealed, commercially produced and labelled.
• Commercially freeze-dried or dehydrated meals that are shelf-stable are not likely to pose any risk and are likely to be let through. The same for any packaged snacks or treats from home that you might want to bring.
• You cannot bring in any fresh or frozen fruits or vegetables or any unlabelled animal products. Don’t even try bringing in that raw steak you wanted to pack out.
• For people coming from Australia and New Zealand, biosecurity and customs in the USA is not as intense as in these countries. Australia and New Zealand are both heavily resourced and committed to searching bags for any food that could pose a risk their sensitive ecosystems. The USA is not as focused on this.
• Freeze-dried or dehydrated home-made and vacuum sealed meals that do not look ‘commercially made’ may, or may not, pass the test. They did for me and it was worth the reward. I did consider printing out stickers to make them look a bit more professional, but in the end, it was entirely unnecessary. In 2021 when I was deep in my research on this, the USDA emailed me with the following, ‘As a general rule, of thumb, we only allow entry of certain commercially processed products into the U.S. and we tend to prohibit commodities which are processed at home due to the variability of processing procedures.’
• CBP has the ultimate discretion to accept or reject any food item you try to bring into the USA.
• Make sure you declare. You’ll definitely get in trouble if you don’t declare what you’ve got, even if it will pass the entry test. I declared that I had food products and was entirely prepared to unveil my suitcase stuffed full of snacks and meals, Radix meals and Mi Goreng packets and Tim Tams on the top.