Tuesday, May 24

 
'Busted for harboring ham'

A ham-sniffing beagle ruined a Trib reporter's bid to bring a tasty but pricey hunk of jamon Iberico de bellota into the U.S. at a Chicago O'Hare customs point.

Apparently she didn't declare the snack on her customs form, but that isn't what brought the customs hound, who remains unidentified, down to her canvas carryall.

Eng didn't know the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services prohibit bringing Spanish pork products into the country. Meat products are potential sources of hoof-and-mouth disease in the U.S. view because the USDA hasn't cleared any Spanish slaughterhouses yet.

She could have faced a $50K fine or 10 years in the clink; instead, she just had to hand over the $50-a-chunk souvenir. I can understand her feeling of loss.

A few points to take away:

1. There's a Museum of Ham?! Yes, but that's not the wierdest part. Madrid has six museums competing for the title, along with countless other tourist attractions that make it the Heaven of Ham.

2. I know it's gourmet and all, but ham out of refrigeration for at least six hours? Ewww.

3. The customs inspector was no ordinary ham-fisted bureaucrat. She knows her ham: After Eng asked what would happen if she just ate the ham instead of handing it over, the inspector said the ham itself was so salty, "I think you might have regretted it for the rest of your life."

posted by Unknown 1:00 PM