Borderland residents attempt to smuggle eggs into US

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — Several borderland residents continue to try to cross eggs from Mexico into the U.S. due to rising prices north of the border. "Nationally we can report that there has been a 48% increase in eggs being detained at all ports of entry this fiscal year when compared to the same time last fiscal year (October 2023 – March 2024)," said a spokesman with U.S. Customs and Border Protection in El Paso. CBP also says importation of raw/fresh eggs into the United States is generally prohibited due to concerns about diseases such as Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) and Virulent Newcastle disease (ND). All travelers coming from Mexico and in this case from Ciudad Juárez are prohibited from bringing in fresh eggs, raw chicken, all pork products, unprocessed avian products, and/or live birds into the United States. "Travelers are encouraged to declare all agriculture products to CBP officers and Agriculture Specialists, failure to declare may lead to potential fines and penalties," CBP added. Most of the eggs being confiscated by CBP agriculture specialists are from travelers who declared the product and then abandoned them without consequence. There have been very few cases of people purposefully evading the inspection process/failing to declare the product. Borderland residents who don't declare these products could face a civil penalty starting at $300, and the eggs are seized. ABC-7 spoke with a CBP El Paso Field Operations Agricultural Specialist to learn more about the trend they are currently seeing here with egg smuggling. We also compare egg prices in the U.S. with Mexico to learn the difference and why residents continue to intend crossings eggs to El Paso.

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