Taking Food to Samoa: What You Need to Know

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Tips for Taking Food to Samoa

Whatever food you decide to take to Samoa, here are some tips we recommend for taking it:

• Declare on your Passenger Arrival Card if you are taking any food to Samoa, even if you think it is allowed
• Write a list of all of the food you are bringing into Samoa, so you can show it to Customs and Biosecurity officers on arrival – this makes for a much quicker and easier process
• Pack food in your check-in luggage; not your carry-on, as many foods are not allowed through airport security
• Make sure all of your food is commercially packaged and clearly states the country of origin. Otherwise, you may need to lodge an import permit
• If you are bringing meat or fruit/vegetables into Samoa, you must submit them to an import inspection at the Animal and Plant Quarantine counter after they have retrieved their baggage.

For some general tips for your trip to Samoa, check out the 30 Tips for Travelling in Samoa.

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What Food Can You Bring to Samoa?

The good news is that arrival passengers can bring a wide variety of food into Samoa, whether it’s cheese, chocolate or a packet of your favourite chips. You can even bring alcohol to Samoa, as long as the quantity doesn’t exceed the duty-free allowance.

The conditions for most food imports by air passengers is that they must be commercially packaged and clearly state the country of origin – so this is a good rule to go by when choosing food to take with you to Samoa. Note that you must still declare all food you wish to bring into Samoa and biosecurity officers may still inspect food, even if it’s permitted.

There are some foods, however, that have certain restrictions, such as meat and plant products. Learn more about these restrictions in the sections below.

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The Meat You Can Take to Samoa (with Restrictions)

Arrival passengers can bring meat to Samoa, as long as it meets certain criteria. As well as being commercially prepared and packaged in unbroken packaging, most meat must be from either Australia, New Zealand or the United States to go through biosecurity without a permit. However, you must still submit them to an import inspection at the Animal and Plant Quarantine counter after they have retrieved their baggage.

Although you can legally bring the below list of food into Samoa you still must declare it. Biosecurity officers may still inspect the food mentioned.

The maximum quantity of meat products which may be imported as passenger’s baggage and for personal use must not exceed 10kg (22lbs). Otherwise, there are additional paperwork and fees.

• Beef/venison/buffalo (e.g. sausage, luncheon, saveloy, meat, hot dogs, frankfurts, pies) can be cooked or uncooked including frozen, smoked, salted, dried and chilled. The country of origin must be Australia, New Zealand, the US or Vanuatu.
• Poultry (e.g. turkey, duck, chicken, ostrich and in the form of carcasses, pieces, sausage, luncheon meat, frankfurts and offal) can be cooked or uncooked including frozen, smoked, dried and chilled. The country of origin must be Australia, New Zealand or the US.
• Pig meats (e.g. ham, sausage, bacon, saveloy, luncheon meat, hot dogs, pies, salami and frankfurts) can be frozen or cooked from Australia, New Zealand or the US, or chilled ONLY can come from Australia or New Zealand.
• Sheep and goat meats (e.g. mutton and lamb) can be cooked or uncooked including frozen, smoked, salted, dried and chilled. The country of origin must be Australia or New Zealand.
• Sheep offal must be frozen or cooked. The country of origin must be Australia, New Zealand or the US.
• Milk products (e.g. yoghurt, cheese, milk, ice cream and UHT products) must be commercially packaged. The country of origin must be Australia, New Zealand or the US.

Note that there are different conditions for meat coming from American Samoa, which you can read up on in the Ministry of Agriculture’s Quarantine Manual.

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The Plant-Based Food You Can Take to Samoa

Although most foods have some sort of plant product within their ingredients, there are still a lot of plant-based foods you can bring to Samoa without having to obtain a permit. As a general rule, the more processed the food is, the more likely it will be allowed to pass biosecurity without an import permit. Again, make sure they are commercially packaged and the country of origin is clearly stated.

An example list of plant-based foods that you can bring to Samoa includes but is not limited to:

• Canned vegetables (cabbages, carrots, eggplant, broccoli, cauliflower, sweet corn, etc.)
• Canned fruit (mango, peaches, plums, mixed fruits cherries, etc.)
• Potato chips
• Cakes (muffins, puddings, Christmas cakes, etc.)
• Biscuits
• Tortilla wraps
• Cooking oils (virgin, olive, vegetable, etc.)
• Peanut butter
• Tomato sauce
• Salt
• Sugar
• Tea leaf (processed in packets)
• Cooked root crops (yams, taro, cassava, breadfruit).

See a full list of plant-based foods that you can import with and without a permit at the Ministry of Agriculture’s Quarantine page.

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What Food Can You Not Take to Samoa (Without a Permit)?

By this point, you’re probably wondering what food isn’t allowed in Samoa. The food that you cannot bring into Samoa without an import permit includes but is not limited to:

• Fresh fruit
• Fresh vegetables
• Dried fruit
• Dried vegetables
• Honey
• Seeds
• Eggs

Some of the food listed above may be allowed into Samoa with an import permit. Otherwise, you will likely be asked to either lodge an application for import, be asked to abandon the item, be permitted to re-export the item, or the item will be destroyed at your expense. Note that you will not be entitled to re-export the item if you did not declare it.

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Frequently Asked Questions About Taking Food to Samoa

What are the most asked questions about taking food to Samoa? We have the answers!

Can You Take Cheese to Samoa?

You can take cheese to Samoa which is commercially packaged and from New Zealand, Australia or the US. Just make sure to declare it on arrival! Cheese from other countries may require an import permit.