Woman fined for carrying banned birds' nests from Vietnam to US

By VnExpress May 28, 2017 | 01:45 am PT

A photo posted by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows bird's nests seized from a traveler from Vietnam.

The nationality of the woman has not been disclosed by the U.S., where imports of the nests are banned due to the risk of viral bird diseases.

A woman traveling from Vietnam has been fined $300 for failing to declare prohibited birds' nests she was carrying in her luggage while attempting to enter the U.S.

Experts from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection found 63 bird’s nests in the woman’s luggage at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport earlier this month.

The nests were seized and destroyed, the agency said in an online statement, which did not identify the woman's nationality.

It said the woman had declared other agricultural items she was carrying but failed to mention the birds' nests. A search found the nests concealed in her belongings.

Bird’s nests, which are created from the solidified saliva of birds, are considered a delicacy in some countries due to their high nutritional value, but are prohibited from entering the United States for fear of viral bird diseases.

In Vietnam, bird’s nests are considered a magical tonic and are often presented as valuable gifts that can be used to make a soup or broth. They are high in calcium, iron, potassium and magnesium.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection last October also fined another passenger traveling from Vietnam for failing to declare 30 birds' nests at an airport in Texas.