Food in Hand Luggage

Galway77

I am flying Dublin to Orlando tomorrow with a stopover in Philadelphia. I am confused about bringing food with me. We will be staying in Disney World so I have bought a few snacks with me for the kids for the hotel room.

I have brought food with me to Paris in my checked luggage no problem and i assumed it would be the same with all flights including the US. But Ive just had a look on the Dublin Airport website and it says this;

In order to avoid delays we suggest that all food items be carried in hand luggage, declared and presented for inspection at the USCBP facility at Dublin Airport.

I was bringing stuff like rice cakes, breakfast bars, cereal, tub of pringles, packet of tuk and cream crackers. Do I really need to put these all in my hand luggage? I have 2 large checked in bags so only planned to bring a small backpack with me for handluggage which had electronics in it, such as the ipad and portable dvd player for the kids.

Does this mean i need to find bigger handluggage? I was surprised to read it as Ive always put food in my checked bags. Is this new? Im sure last time we went to Orlando we had a few snacks in our checked in bag.

coylemj

There are specific regulations about what foods items you can and cannot bring into the US, it's all about preventing the importation of disease and pests but the packaged items you mention should be fine. You say it's for the kids in the hotel in Orlando - virtually all of that stuff will cost a fraction in the US so I'd buy it over there instead.

Dave1442397

They won't bother you with dry, packaged food like that. All that stuff will be half the price at a US supermarket, so you can always stock up in Orlando. Look for a Publix store - they're all over Orlando.

ProudDUB

You will be fine with dry goods like crackers & biscuits. You can put them in either bag, it doesn't really matter.

You can't bring any fruit or vegetables with you, as they may be carrying diseases or pests. So if you were planning on bringing apples or bananas for the kids to snack on during the journey, you can't. You also can't bring in any meat products. So if you are making sambos to take on the trip, fillings like ham and chicken etc are out.

If you are flying direct from Ireland, you are not allowed take any banned food items thru the Customs & Immigration check point. If it is your intention to eat them on the plane, or toss them away before you land, you can't. Once you go thru C&I, you are technically on US soil and the same rules apply as if you were physically in the US.

When flying to the US, it is a good rule of thumb to always check the various rules and regulations that are specific to the US. Don't presume that everything will be the same as they are in Ireland/Europe, as they are often far stricter about a lot of things.

iusedtoknow

Dave1442397 wrote: »

They won't bother you with dry, packaged food like that. All that stuff will be half the price at a US supermarket, so you can always stock up in Orlando. Look for a Publix store - they're all over Orlando.

Agree with this...while it won't be the brands your kids are used to (except pringles etc) the food will be a lot cheaper in the US, and a lot less hassle than trying to bring everything in luggage (you wanting to have it in the hold meaning they weren't expecting them to have access to it in flight)

spideog7

Don't listen to them, most of that type of food is sh*te over here. Bring it with you, you'll probably have no problem, they're mostly concerned with fruit, veg, meat and dairy.

ceadaoin.

I agree, just buy all that stuff when you get there. Crackers, rice cakes etc are all the same here and they're a lot cheaper. I don't know how old your kids are but target have all the Ella's kitchen stuff which are handy for throwing in a bag for snacks.

If not, I've brought that sort of stuff with me before for my daughter to eat during the flight and it was fine. My parents brought over some stuff for in their checked bags with no probs. It's fresh stuff like fruit and veg, dairy and meat they are concerned with I think.