Bringing Food Back from Mexico to the UK: What Customs Allows

Almost everyone who comes back from a food trip to Mexico comes back with a suitcase full of it: bags of dried chillies, a jar of mole paste, a slab of Oaxacan chocolate, a bottle of mezcal, perhaps a wheel of cheese from the market. Some of that is perfectly legal to bring into Great Britain. Some of it is not, and can be seized at the border, with fines on top. This guide sets out what GOV.UK says about bringing food and drink into Great Britain from a country outside the EU such as Mexico, as of October 2026. It is a summary, not legal advice: the rules change, so check the GOV.UK pages linked below before you pack.

One note before anything else: these are the rules for arriving in Great Britain, that is England, Scotland and Wales. Northern Ireland has its own rules, and GOV.UK has separate pages for arrivals there.

What you cannot bring: meat and dairy

GOV.UK is clear that from countries outside the EU you cannot bring in meat or meat products, or milk or milk-based products, in your personal luggage. The only exceptions are powdered infant milk, infant food and special food needed for medical reasons, in branded, unopened packaging and not needing refrigeration.

For a Mexican food trip, that rules out a lot of what you might want to bring home:

• Cheese. Oaxaca cheese, queso fresco, cotija and any other cheese are milk-based products. Leave them behind.
• Cured and dried meats. Chorizo, cecina, machaca and other meat products cannot come in.

What you can bring, with limits: fish and honey

• Fish and seafood. GOV.UK allows up to 20kg per person in total of fish, including gutted fresh fish, prawns and lobsters, with tighter limits on live shellfish. If you want to bring dried shrimp, which is used in Mexican cooking, check the GOV.UK page for how it is treated.
• Honey. Up to 2kg per person.

Fruit, vegetables, nuts and seeds

This is where most people get caught out. GOV.UK says you cannot bring in most fruit or vegetables from outside the EU unless you have a phytosanitary, or plant health, certificate from the country you are leaving. The page lists the exceptions you can bring without one, including pineapple, coconut, mango, banana, plantain, dates, guava, passion fruit, persimmon and kumquat, as well as processed and packaged plant products and peeled or processed nuts and nut butters.

So a mango from the market is fine; avocados, tomatillos, fresh chillies, limes and most other produce are not, without a certificate. Seeds for planting and plants are covered by separate GOV.UK rules on plants and wood, which you should check before bringing back tomatillo or chilli seeds for the garden.

Chillies, spices, mole and other packaged foods

GOV.UK's overview lists several kinds of food that are not restricted from any country, including chocolate and confectionery, except those made with a lot of unprocessed dairy; packaged soups, stocks and flavourings; bread, except sandwiches filled with meat or dairy; cakes without fresh cream; and biscuits.

The overview does not mention dried chillies, spices, mole paste or sauces by name, and milk sweets such as cajeta are a grey area, because the confectionery exemption excludes products made with a lot of unprocessed dairy. If you are unsure about anything, the safe course is to declare it when you arrive and let the border officers decide.

Alcohol: tequila, mezcal and beer

GOV.UK's personal allowance for arrivals in Great Britain from outside the UK covers:

• spirits and other drinks over 22 per cent alcohol, such as tequila and mezcal: 4 litres; or drinks up to 22 per cent, not counting beer, cider or wine: 9 litres. You can split this allowance, for example two litres of spirits and four and a half litres of fortified wine;
• still or sparkling wine: 18 litres;
• beer and cider: 42 litres.

There is no alcohol allowance if you are under 17. If you go over an allowance, you must declare the goods and pay tax and duty on everything in that category, not just the excess. GOV.UK also sets an allowance for other goods by value; check the current figure on the GOV.UK page.

A packing checklist

Putting the GOV.UK rules together, a typical Mexican food haul sorts into three piles.

• Generally fine: chocolate, including the tablets used for hot chocolate; boxed sweets without much dairy; biscuits and bread; packaged stock cubes and flavourings; a mango or a pineapple; honey up to the limit; tequila and mezcal within your allowance.
• Not allowed: cheese, cream and other milk products; chorizo, cecina and any other meat; most fresh fruit and vegetables, including avocados, limes, tomatillos and fresh chillies, unless you have a plant health certificate.
• Check, and declare if unsure: dried chillies, spices, mole paste, sauces, milk sweets, dried shrimp, seeds for planting, and anything bought loose at a market rather than in sealed commercial packaging.

When in doubt, use the red channel or the red point at the airport. Declaring something that turns out to be allowed costs you a few minutes; failing to declare something that is not can cost you the goods and a fine.

Leaving Mexico

Mexico has its own customs rules too. The FCDO's travel advice says Mexico has strict customs rules and that you must declare anything prohibited or taxable, so check what you are allowed to take out as well as what you can bring in.

Buy it here instead

The good news is that almost everything you cannot bring back can be bought in the UK. Corn tortillas, dried chillies, masa harina, mole pastes and Mexican sweets are all sold by the online Mexican grocers in our directory, which deliver across the UK:

Mexgrocer UK

Address: Units 11 & 12 Stadium Industrial Estate, LU4 0JF
Opening hours (directory listing): Mon–Thu 09:00–17:00 · Fri 09:00–16:00 · Sat–Sun closed
Website: mexgrocer.co.uk

Cool Chile Co Online

Address: 46 Westwood Park Trading Estate, Concord Road, W3 0TH
Opening hours (directory listing): Mon–Fri 08:00–17:00 · Sat–Sun closed
Website: coolchile.co.uk

LaTiendita Online

Address: 365 New Kings Road, SW6 4RJ
Opening hours (directory listing): not listed in our directory
Website: latienditamex.co.uk

Mestizo Market Online

Address: 101 Hampstead Road, NW1 3EW
Opening hours (directory listing): daily 12:00–20:00
Website: mestizomarket.com

For Mexican cheese in the UK and British substitutes, see our guide to Mexican cheese in the UK. For tequila and mezcal, our guide to the UK's tequila and mezcal specialists lists the shops.

Frequently asked questions

Can I bring Mexican cheese into the UK?

No. GOV.UK says milk-based products cannot be brought into Great Britain from outside the EU in personal luggage.

Can I bring dried chillies back from Mexico?

GOV.UK's overview does not name them. Packaged, dried products are lower-risk than fresh ones, but declare them if you are unsure.

How much mezcal can I bring back?

Up to 4 litres of spirits over 22 per cent alcohol within your personal allowance, if you are 17 or over.

Can I bring Mexican chocolate?

Yes. Chocolate and confectionery are not restricted, unless made with a lot of unprocessed dairy.

Sources

• GOV.UK, Bringing food, animals or plants into Great Britain: gov.uk
• GOV.UK, Bringing meat, dairy, fish and animal products into Great Britain: gov.uk
• GOV.UK, Bringing fruit, vegetables, nuts and seeds into Great Britain: gov.uk
• GOV.UK, Bringing goods into the UK for personal use (alcohol allowances): gov.uk
• GOV.UK, Bringing plants and wood into Great Britain: gov.uk
• GOV.UK, Foreign travel advice: Mexico, entry requirements (Mexican customs): gov.uk