Can I send bacon in the post to France - anyone know?

Pigs might fly! Brexit says no!

www.royalmail.com/sending/international/country-guides/france

has a list of restrictions and prohibitions but it is not very clear.
They state you also should check La Poste's restrictions.

I believe it is not legal to send foodstuffs unless you have an export licence, but have not been able to find any site that states whether it is legal or not.

Post Brexit you will need to fill out a customs declaration - the old stand-by "unsolicited gift" might be good enough, but I doubt it.

These days parcels may well be X-rayed, so the contents are checked, as there is a long list of items, such as wadding and lighter fuel that are assumed to be wanted by terrorists and thus contraband in parcels.

We lived in France for six months and had no difficulty buying bacon either in supermarkets or chacuteries.

Me neither proper gravy all the way for me I was once in an airport queue with a ham roll in my bag. Sniffer dogs were being used, probably to look for drugs. They came right up to my bag and sniffed and didn't seem to notice! My Jack Russell who I've sadly lost since would have sniffed in out in two seconds flat!

Those were the days my friend ....it was all so simple then.

I posted a small gift in a padded envelope. The postage cost twice as much as the gift and I had to complete paperwork listing what was in it and its cost. Rather spoils the surprise.

Really, why would you want to. Has never been allowed surely.

grannyrebel7

Me neither proper gravy all the way for me I was once in an airport queue with a ham roll in my bag. Sniffer dogs were being used, probably to look for drugs. They came right up to my bag and sniffed and didn't seem to notice! My Jack Russell who I've sadly lost since would have sniffed in out in two seconds flat!

The dogs are specifically trained to sniff out illegal drugs, grannyrebel7. They’d only be interested in your lunch if you’d stuffed a wodge of cocaine in with the ham.

The dogs at Auckland, NZ, can sniff anything. Our son got stopped with an apple core, (unless of course his rucksack had smells of something less innocuous from youth hostelling!)
Cheese must be the easiest to sniff!

You could when the thread was started in 2012. You can't now!

Elegran

I resorted to Google (as always when I don't know) and there are several online firms who will send British Goodies to ex-pats. Presumably they have negotiated their way round all the legalities - and they will package them suitably. here is the one that came first on Google's list:-

www.britishcornershop.co.uk/

(I am not advertising. I know nothing about this firm except that they seem to be high up on the Google list so must be popular)

The one my family in Germany use, They have found them very helpful.

Oops

less wholesome not innocuous!

I didn’t realise how old this thread is until I saw Greatnan’s post. I think the sad story about what happened to her some years later was being discussed soon after I joined.

I wonder if Marelli is still a member?
I also find myself wondering what happened to the bacon. Did it arrive unscathed? So many unanswered questions! The granddaughter and boyfriend could be married by now.

Where do people find these threads which are years old?

Don't suppose an answer is relevant after nine years, but The British Corner Shop now has a base in the Netherlands and you can order directly from Ireland.

Josianne

The dogs at Auckland, NZ, can sniff anything. Our son got stopped with an apple core, (unless of course his rucksack had smells of something less innocuous from youth hostelling!)
Cheese must be the easiest to sniff!

But they’re not supposed to - they’ve got one job! They need retraining if they’re telling their handlers to open bags containing ham rolls or apple cores.

No. Certainly not after Brexit. No meat, dairy products. But even before that I think it was not allowed due to it being perishable.

Though on second thoughts, they’re strict on bringing any food into NZ, aren’t they? Maybe that dog was actually a trained apple sniffer.

Maggiemaybe

Josianne

The dogs at Auckland, NZ, can sniff anything. Our son got stopped with an apple core, (unless of course his rucksack had smells of something less innocuous from youth hostelling!)
Cheese must be the easiest to sniff!

But they’re not supposed to - they’ve got one job! They need retraining if they’re telling their handlers to open bags containing ham rolls or apple cores.

I beg to disagree. You have to declare any foodstuffs or dispose of it before you enter the country. There are bins for disposing of any food unless it is sealed. Even then all foodstuffs must be declared. No fresh fruit, veg, meats etc are allowed.

One time entering NZ, I’d had a banana in my bag on the flight and the dog sniffed it out. I had to show my bag no longer contained the offending item.

They have extremely tight bio security to protect the environment from unwanted wildlife.

The PO has a list of items that it is illegal to post.

Fascinating how the dogs can pick up all sorts of scents .... foods, drugs, firearms ammunition, bombs etc. I guess they each have their own specialities! Though cannabis, unlike pills, would be organic material I guess? So well trained.

MayBeMaw

This thread dates back to 2012!
Lovely to see Greatnan and indeed a previous incarnation of our Kali2
(The bacon could have walked there by now- did you send it OP?)

And Jings! JO4.

I liked Marelli - does she post under another name I wonder.

Myrtleflower how did you find such an old thread? !

Yes, I realised after I’d posted that we’d moved on from dogs trained to sniff out drugs, ayse, hence my second post.

Those dogs specialise in all illegal drugs, Josianne. They can detect cannabis, and some have had to be retired early as they were trained to do so, then their country/state has decriminalised it. Once learnt, the skill can’t be unlearnt!

I have images of Allo, allo and hiding the Madonna with the big boobies in a salami

I’m watching reruns of that every evening….can’t remember which channel it’s on.

baconbythebox.com/ Try this.

Here I am - Marelli as was! Yes, the bacon, plus 2 packets of crumpets flew over to a caravan and camping site in France, where my (now) grandson-in-law and my granddaughter were working. It was his 21st birthday.
It arrived safely and quickly and -according to them - still fresh!!
JenniferEccles they got married 2 years ago last August, and are expecting their second child a week on Friday! ☺️
Thankyou, Riverwalk, that’s very kind of you. ☺️

Crawler