Costa Rican authorities seize half-ton of illegal … cheese

Now this is just brie-diculous.

An ongoing operation by Costa Rican authorities near the Nicaraguan border resulted in the seizure of 476 kilograms of illegal cheese, the Public Security Ministry announced Wednesday.

The muenster-ous haul occurred Tuesday in San José de Upala while officers conducted traffic stops to inspect cargo-carrying vehicles, the press release said. The cheese was found packed into the back of a covered truck. It was not labeled, and the driver was not carrying invoices for the food.

National Animal Health Service (SENASA) officials found dirt and mold on the cheese, some of which was already decomposing. In accordance to proper protocol, they buried the cheese in order to avoid its consumption.

While strange, this isn’t the first time SENASA has confiscated illegal cheese. In 2018, they reportedly destroyed more than 1,120 kilograms of the dairy product, some of which was smuggled into the country from Nicaragua.

“It is important to remember that this type of merchandise puts public health and sanitary status of the country at risk,” Federico Chaverri Suárez, general director of SENASA, said at the time. “Producers and merchants must work in accordance with current sanitary regulations and the consumer must be vigilant not to purchase products from doubtful origin.”

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