Sending Food Overseas - advice needed

[littlecabbage]

Hi

My brother has lived in Australia (Melbourne) for several years now, and for his birthday this year, I’d like to send him a “hamper” of certain British foods that he may not be able to get there, and specifically those that will remind him of childhood.

I thought that packaged food would generally be fine, and bought a load at the supermarket today, but now have read online that packaged foodstuffs have to be dated at least 6 months away. The stuff I bought comprises crisps, chocolate, sweets, biscuits etc, and is mostly dated over 6 months away, but the stuff that isn’t is:

Packet of Monster Munch
Packet of Prawn Cocktail Walkers
Pack of Mr Kipling Cherry Bakewells
Pack of Tunnocks Chocolate Wafers

My question is, has anybody successfully sent/received this stuff to/in Australia, or has anybody had these things rejected? How strict do you think the 6 month date issue is, if the food is prepackaged and unopened? The crisps and wafers are dated a few months from now, the Cherry Bakewells dated a few weeks away (end of April).

Also, if some items are rejected, will just those things be chucked, or will the whole lot be chucked or sent back? I don’t know whether to risk putting these items in the package or not, but would obviously prefer to send him everything I had chosen.

Postage is another tricky topic but I guess I am prepared to pay the cheapest price I’ve found (£20), but any tips to find cheaper would be welcomed.

Thanks for any advice.

Have you looked at finding companies in Oz who supply British food.

www.bestofbritish.com.au/

might be a simpler way :)

Thanks butterfly

I have looked into this sort of thing before and not found the range available and the prices to be that great. The site you’ve mentioned does look good, but I think I’ll stick with what I’ve already bought, as I’ve tried to choose things that will particularly remind him of our childhood.

If customs open the package to check and pull out the short-dated stuff the whole lot will be binned. If fact, the cherry bakewells will probably be out of date by the time the parcel gets there. Disappointing but I wouldn’t take the chance.

Hmm, perhaps I'll ditch the Cherry Bakewells and try to find longer dated crisps and wafers then.

The courier I was looking at was 7-9 working days, so the Bakewells should last, but if their presence risks the entire package, it isn't worth it.

I sent a box of British goodies from the British Corner shop to my niece in the US and they handled it all - shipping, regulations and customs etc
www.britishcornershop.co.uk/

I just want to say they are the loveliest gift.
My dh were living in the States as a Christmas present as we couldn't come home in laws sent us a proper breakfast it was from one of those shipping companies.
It was 16 years ago but it was such a great present

Thanks Lunde. Since my last post, I have looked on the relevant Aus government page, and they do allow cake to be sent, as long as it is "shelf stable" (they don't specify the 6 month thing - I read that on a courier's website, but nowhere else).

I've sent an enquiry to ask exactly what that means, but they may take up to 10 days to answer, which is too long for me to wait! I have bought a new pack of Cherry Bakewells, with a date of 12th May instead of April 30th, and am thinking of just posting it all tomorrow, and hoping for the best!

Just thought I’d update, in case anyone has a similar enquiry in the future.... I eventually sent my food package on 11th April, via Transglobal Express. It comprised biscuits, crisps, chocolate, sweets, and the dreaded Cherry Bakewells! It was £12 worth of food in total, and we addded a birthday card, and wrapped the box in wrapping paper (but left it easily opened on the top, so that Customs could check it), then in a plastic postage bag.

I received a reply from the Australian Government Dept of Agriculture pretty quickly, confirming that “shelf stable” means “stable at room temperature, i.e. not requiring refrigeration”. I also found out that the parcel would not incur charges for my brother as it was well below a certain value.

At first, couriers were quoting as low as £17 for the size and weight of the package, but as I gradually clicked through their Ts and Cs, it became apparent that many refuse to carry food of any kind! By this point, I had invested so much time and energy in this parcel, that I decided to send it with TGE for the ridiculous price of £32!

I did all the relevant paperwork, and they rang me to check that it was ready for collection. When they heard I was sending food, they wanted to check that it had 6 months left on the shelf life (where do the couriers get this figure from?) and I explained that the Aus government do not actually require this. They agreed to still send it.

So, a couple of days ago, I checked the tracking, and saw that the parcel had cleared Australian customs, and then checked again this morning to see that my brother had signed for the parcel - it arrived on his birthday! He was really pleased to get all the edible reminders of his British past, so all’s well that ends well! Not sure I will pay that much again, but glad I did it this once.

Hope that is helpful for anyone reading this in the future!