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| Meta Title | Bringing food into Great Britain: Overview - GOV.UK |
| Meta Description | The rules on bringing food or animal products into Great Britain from abroad: restrictions, types of food and the amount you can bring. |
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| Boilerpipe Text | Overview
There are rules for bringing food or animal products into Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales) for your own use.
You can bring the following into Great Britain from any country without any restrictions:
bread, but not sandwiches filled with meat or dairy products
cakes without fresh cream
biscuits
chocolate and confectionery, but not those made with a lot of unprocessed dairy ingredients
pasta and noodles, but not if mixed or filled with meat or meat products
packaged soup, stocks and flavourings
processed and packaged plant products, such as packaged salads and frozen plant material
food supplements containing small amounts of an animal product, such as fish oil capsules
Restricted items
There are restrictions on bringing
meat, dairy, fish and animal products
and
fruit, vegetables, nuts and seeds
into Great Britain from abroad.
If you’re bringing in any food or animal products protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (
CITES
), you may need to
apply for a
CITES
permit
. |
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# Bringing food into Great Britain
[Skip contents](https://www.gov.uk/bringing-food-into-great-britain#guide-contents)
## Contents
1. Overview
2. [Meat, dairy, fish and animal products](https://www.gov.uk/bringing-food-into-great-britain/meat-dairy-fish-animal-products)
3. [Fruit, vegetables, nuts and seeds](https://www.gov.uk/bringing-food-into-great-britain/fruit-vegetables-nuts-seeds)
4. [Pet food](https://www.gov.uk/bringing-food-into-great-britain/pet-food)
5. [Check if you need a CITES permit](https://www.gov.uk/bringing-food-into-great-britain/check-if-you-need-a-cites-permit)
6. [If you break the rules](https://www.gov.uk/bringing-food-into-great-britain/if-you-break-the-rules)
# Overview
There are rules for bringing food or animal products into Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales) for your own use.
There are different rules if you’re [bringing food or animal products into Northern Ireland](http://www.daera-ni.gov.uk/topics/food/personal-food-imports).
You can bring the following into Great Britain from any country without any restrictions:
- bread, but not sandwiches filled with meat or dairy products
- cakes without fresh cream
- biscuits
- chocolate and confectionery, but not those made with a lot of unprocessed dairy ingredients
- pasta and noodles, but not if mixed or filled with meat or meat products
- packaged soup, stocks and flavourings
- processed and packaged plant products, such as packaged salads and frozen plant material
- food supplements containing small amounts of an animal product, such as fish oil capsules
## Restricted items
There are restrictions on bringing [meat, dairy, fish and animal products](https://www.gov.uk/bringing-food-into-great-britain/meat-dairy-fish-animal-products) and [fruit, vegetables, nuts and seeds](https://www.gov.uk/bringing-food-into-great-britain/fruit-vegetables-nuts-seeds) into Great Britain from abroad.
If you’re bringing in any food or animal products protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), you may need to [apply for a CITES permit](https://www.gov.uk/bringing-food-into-great-britain/check-if-you-need-a-cites-permit).
[Next:Meat, dairy, fish and animal products](https://www.gov.uk/bringing-food-into-great-britain/meat-dairy-fish-animal-products)
[View a printable version of the whole guide](https://www.gov.uk/bringing-food-into-great-britain/print)
## Related content
- [Bringing plants and wood into Great Britain](https://www.gov.uk/bringing-plants-and-wood-into-great-britain)
- [Bringing pets to Great Britain](https://www.gov.uk/bringing-pet-animals-to-great-britain)
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| Readable Markdown | Overview
There are rules for bringing food or animal products into Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales) for your own use.
You can bring the following into Great Britain from any country without any restrictions:
- bread, but not sandwiches filled with meat or dairy products
- cakes without fresh cream
- biscuits
- chocolate and confectionery, but not those made with a lot of unprocessed dairy ingredients
- pasta and noodles, but not if mixed or filled with meat or meat products
- packaged soup, stocks and flavourings
- processed and packaged plant products, such as packaged salads and frozen plant material
- food supplements containing small amounts of an animal product, such as fish oil capsules
## Restricted items
There are restrictions on bringing [meat, dairy, fish and animal products](https://www.gov.uk/bringing-food-into-great-britain/meat-dairy-fish-animal-products) and [fruit, vegetables, nuts and seeds](https://www.gov.uk/bringing-food-into-great-britain/fruit-vegetables-nuts-seeds) into Great Britain from abroad.
If you’re bringing in any food or animal products protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), you may need to [apply for a CITES permit](https://www.gov.uk/bringing-food-into-great-britain/check-if-you-need-a-cites-permit). |
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