Egg product seizures are outpacing fentanyl stopped at the border
As the bird flu continues to wreak havoc on the U.S. egg supply, U.S. Customs and Border Protection data show there have been significantly more egg products seized at U.S. borders than the number of seizures of the powerful synthetic opioid fentanyl so far in fiscal year 2025.
According to the CBP data, there have been 413 drug seizure events involving fentanyl in fiscal year 2025, with December, January and February all having fewer fentanyl seizures than in those months the year before.
Meanwhile, there have been 5,572 egg product interceptions so far this fiscal year, the data show. There were nearly 16,000 such interceptions in all of fiscal year 2024.
In February, the agency's San Diego field office reported a 158% increase in egg interceptions since fiscal year 2024.
The rise in egg interceptions comes as the U.S. continues to battle an outbreak of avian flu that has devastated the poultry industry and caused a surge in egg prices and shortages in some stores.
CBP has said most of the egg product interceptions that have occurred were because people were unaware that they couldn't bring those products across the border. "Travelers are prohibited from bringing fresh eggs, raw chicken, or live birds into the United States from Mexico," the agency notes.
Officials warn that bringing in such products, even though they might be cheaper for individuals, carry potential health risks and could make problems even worse.
"According to U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service statistics, a devastating outbreak of avian influenza has affected millions of domestic birds in the United States, contributing to rising egg and poultry prices," CBP's San Diego office said in February. "This ongoing bird flu outbreak, the worst on record, serves as a reminder of the role human behaviors, such as transporting birds and avian products, can play in disease transmission. Items like soiled bird cages or used egg carton can spread diseases, including Virulent Newcastle disease," a respiratory virus that's often fatal to infected birds.
Can you bring egg products into the U.S.?
According to the USDA's Animal and Planet Health Inspection Service, most egg and egg products are not allowed to be brought into the U.S. from countries impacted by certain poultry diseases, including the highly pathogenic avian influenza, otherwise known as bird flu, and the virulent Newcastle disease. Countries' statuses for those diseases can be found online.
There are numerous restrictions barring travelers from bringing fresh eggs and other products into the U.S. from Canada or Mexico.
The only exceptions for this are if the products are commercially packaged and labeled, cooked shelf-stable fully finished food items that have been unopened, or if they are cooked eggs or egg products that have been inspected by agents.
The USDA says fresh or preserved eggs from countries without the listed diseases will be permitted into the U.S. if travelers have documentation proving the product's country of origin, such as package labels, proof of travel, flight origin or receipts.
More detailed information on traveling with egg products is available here.
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