I'm a bit confused about some information I've gathered here and elsewhere.  It seems to be common practice to fill a freezer full of fresh meat and poultry prior to heading out of the U.S.  My boating experience in the Pacific Northwest has been if you cross from the U.S. to Canada there are restrictions on the quantities of meat and other items (wine...) you can have in your possession.  This is true both ways.

So, can any passagemakers advise the practices in Mexico and Central America?  If we arrive in Cabo with a freezer full of NY steaks and 30 bottles of wine are we going to have them "confiscated"?  Thanks!

Scott Bulger, N40II, Seattle WA

Greetings Scott.

We live in Seattle, and in Cabo, so go back and forth all the time.

That said, I have no experience crossing the border on a boat - so I don't
know what they do, and whether or not crossing on a plane is representative.
The "official regulations" are probably the same regardless of the mode of
transportation.

We always bring down to Cabo a large cooler with frozen steaks - typically a
two month supply. Usually, customs asks "what is in the cooler?" and we just
say frozen steaks. They have asked us to open the cooler only on one
occasion. My understanding is that chicken is forbidden, and on the one time
they did open the cooler, and saw we had chicken, they just said "you aren't
supposed to bring chicken" after which they closed the cooler, and let us
keep it.

As to wine: we always bring down wine; typically only six or eight bottles.
On the occasions they've asked what we had, we've said "that suitcase is
full of wine." They have never opened the suitcase. I believe the official
rule is that 3 bottles a person are ok.

Good luck!

-Ken Williams, N68

-----Original Message-----
From: passagemaking-under-power-bounces@lists.samurai.com
[mailto:passagemaking-under-power-bounces@lists.samurai.com] On Behalf Of
scottebulger@comcast.net
Sent: Monday, January 15, 2007 7:07 PM
To: PUP
Subject: [PUP] Provisioning for Mexico and Central America

I'm a bit confused about some information I've gathered here and elsewhere.
It seems to be common practice to fill a freezer full of fresh meat and
poultry prior to heading out of the U.S.  My boating experience in the
Pacific Northwest has been if you cross from the U.S. to Canada there are
restrictions on the quantities of meat and other items (wine...) you can
have in your possession.  This is true both ways.

So, can any passagemakers advise the practices in Mexico and Central
America?  If we arrive in Cabo with a freezer full of NY steaks and 30
bottles of wine are we going to have them "confiscated"?  Thanks!

Scott Bulger, N40II, Seattle WA

Hey there Scott - My experience has been hit-or-miss.
Some countries tend toward reciprocol privelages -
treating foreigners the way their nationals are
treated when crossing into the US so if there is some
sort of oblique geo-political issue, expect increased
scrutiny. If the US cracks down on Mexican
immigration, expect more inspection. A mad-cow scare
is another example. And then there are the local
vagaries - rules are applied inconsistently, some
small towns have tried to force using an agent to
clear locally, but the Mexican govt is trying very
hard to make the process easier and more uniform.

But here's some experiences over the past few years:

2-months ago Cabo (with Patrick Gerety). No
inspection.

2-years ago in Cabo: confiscated anything beef
(including some frozen, packaged beef burritos)

3-years ago Acapulco: inspected at anchor, but not
rigorous (checked-in through the Acapulco YC). No
confiscations.

2-1/2 years ago Panama: Inspection, no problems of any
sort.

With the exception of the trip down with Patrick,
these were all deliveries, no alcohol aboard so I
cannot speak to that. Personally, I'd prepare for the
worst (meat products confiscated), but hope for the
best.

Incidentally, there is a Costco in Ensenada, Cabo, and
Acapulco; and Sam's Clubs in Acapulco, Mazatlan, and
Puerto Vallarta. Getting more meat isn't an issue if
you prefer American-style shopping.

As an aside, Central American countries seem to like
fruit soda. Hansens soda is unusual, and seems to be
very well received - I wish I had remembered this when
I went to Cabo with Patrick: Patrick is an extremely
affable person who really enjoys practicing his
Spanish, especially children. I suspsect a Hansens
soda would have gone over even better than the candy
he had.

Peter
www.SeaSkills.com