Not all eggs are created equal in the eyes of U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Kinder Eggs, a popular European chocolate egg that contains a toy inside, is banned from importation into the United States because it contains a "non-nutritive object embedded in it."
With the Easter holiday around the corner, the agency issued the reminder this week, warning that the candy is considered unsafe for children under 3. Last year, Customs and Border Protection seized 25,000 of them in 1,700 incidents.
The hollow egg, which is sold by the Italian confectioner Ferrero, is available in Europe, Canada, Australia and parts of Latin America under various names including Kinder Surprise and Kinder Sorpresa. It has taken on a cult status among adults who collect the toys, which vary from rings to animals and cartoon characters.
Kinder Eggs' scarcity in the United States has made them an object of desire: Various websites and online forums are dedicated to acquiring them.
Some are apparently hiding in plain sight. Earlier this week, DNAinfo.com, a New York City neighborhood guide, posted a story and slideshow showing stores where the coveted treats can be found.
"While there are some commercial-sized seizures that occur, most Kinder Eggs are seized in personal baggage or at mail and express consignment facilities," Customs and Border Protection said.
A Canadian woman reportedly learned her lesson the hard way.
The woman was selected for a random search at a border checkpoint in Minnesota when officials discovered she was carrying a Kinder Egg and took it from her, The Toronto Star reported.
A few weeks later, she received a 7-page letter asking if she wanted the egg back or if she was going to abandon rights to it, the Star reported.
"I was in disbelief," she told the newspaper. "It's a $2 egg."
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I had no idea they were banned in US. I brought 70 of them back from Munich this winter.
I grew up with these!! They are awesome!! I honestly cant believe your Govt still has this ban!! On a side note, shouldn't Lady GaGa technically be Banned?? She was the toy in an egg!!
@Seneca, Lee is completely correct-so I would advise you to take some of your own medicine, and, to quote you: "Educate yourself about what you speak of before you speak of it." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinder_Surprise
...and Wikipedia is the most reliable source?
@Canadian: lmao. Spot-on!
What!!!!! No kinder eggs in my basket. Packing up my pimped out hover round and going to DC.
Now this is just absurd. If they're that worried, then they should just issue a warning about it.
well, over here ieverybody wants to get money with a lawsuit so lets try it with ..ueberraschungs eiern....worked with hot coffee
Every Canadian going over the border this weekend, pack a Kinder toy. Giv
The toy inside of the egg comes in a plastic container. That container can't be opened by a small child. The chocolate of the egg coats the plastic container.
The rule's beyond stupid. Anyone enforcing this law needs a smack to the back of the head.
You mean to tell me that 75% of your health care costs are due to repeated illnesses due to diet, yet you're worried about a little egg that can't even harm a child? Really?
Every Canadian going over the border from now on pack a Kinder toy. Give Fatherland Security something to do. Hundreds of thousands of 7 page letters, beauraucratic stupidity gone wil. At least us inefficient socialists can't be bothered with this crap.
We used to buy Kinder Eggs every time we ate at Crepes and Waffles in Quito Ecuador during the three years we lived there. Our kids absolutely loved them, and I was very disappointed that we couldn't buy them here in the US. From time to time we've had Latin friends bring some here, and the kids have been thrilled.
I really don't get it–Barbie accessories & Legos are at least as great a choking hazard (our two-year old loves both), and yet they're perfectly legal. Why should Kinder Eggs have been singled out?!
Because you eat the outside and a child may not know where the candy stops and the plastic begins.
For those who have never seen a Kinder Surprise egg, please know that it is ridiculous to say that a kid or a grown-up for that matter could accidentally choke on the plastic egg inside. The chocolate is a thin-hollow shell with a LARGE plastic egg rattling around inside. You can't start eating the chocolate and not know when to stop and I don't want to meet the kid that could accidentally swallow that plastic egg! Now choking on Baby Jesus in a king cake is a real possibility...
.... NewsFlash - Fortune Cookies have a "non-nutritive object embedded" in them too !! ... BAN THEM NOW !!
Good point about fortune cookies having "non-nutritive object embedded in them". Some other food items to ban than would be corndogs, popsicles, lollipops, sugar-free gum, cherries and any other pitted fruit.
...are they marketted to kids who do not know the diff between cookie and paper???
Ummm, King Cake is perfectly legal. What is the government doublespeak explanation for one being fine while the other is a national security threat?
I'm exhausted and so is my money supply...we may be able to balance the budget if we'd stop this petty patrol. China manages to use an additive in our dog food that killed dogs, lead is in children's toys...drugs come over our borders and on and on.... Start monitoring things that matter and give us back our right to make our own informed decision.And the guy with some kinder eggs in his freezer...are you selling them?
Well kids whose parents are so stupid to let their child choke on a toy don't deserve to have kids and it's probably for the best these kids choke. Too much stupidity in this country. No need to spread it even more. Death with KINDER EGGS! REALLY PEOPLE? I grew up with these candy and they were the BEST sweet from my childhood. Now here I can't even go back to my 6yo self!!!??? Because people are stupid???? !!!