That's a lot of bologna: US border officers seize more than 150 pounds of pork

Codell Rodriguez, El Paso Times
That's a lot of bologna: US border officers seize more than 150 pounds of pork

EL PASO, Texas – A driver crossing the Mexican border said he was hauling turkey ham, but CBP officers thought it was a bunch of bologna.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized 14 rolls of Mexican bologna Thursday morning at the Bridge of the Americas international crossing.

A Chevrolet pickup truck with Texas license plates entered the port from Mexico shortly after 9 a.m. Thursday. A CBP officer spotted red rolls behind the rear seat of the truck, which the driver claimed was frozen turkey ham being brought from Mexico.

Officers with CBP's Office of Field Operations Agriculture Specialists performed a secondary exam and confirmed the driver was hauling 154 pounds of bologna. The meat was seized and destroyed, and the driver was released. The sausage is prohibited because the pork has the potential to introduce foreign animal diseases.

CBP officers recently seized more than 150 pounds of Mexican Bologna at a border crossing in El Paso. Pork cannot be brought across the border because of the danger of potential diseases.
CBP officers recently seized more than 150 pounds of Mexican Bologna at a border crossing in El Paso. Pork cannot be brought across the border because of the danger of potential diseases.

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"It is important that travelers understand they should declare all items they are transporting from abroad to avoid fines and penalties. A properly declared prohibited item can be abandoned at the port without consequence," CBP El Paso Port Director Beverly Good said in a news release.

Agencies such as the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Fish and Wildlife Service require that unsafe items do not enter the United States. While antiterrorism is CBP's primary mission, according to their news release, the inspection process requires enforcement actions in other categories.

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This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: CBP inspection seizes Mexican bologna at El Paso border stop