2,536 Reasons to Raise Your Eyebrows: Bizarre Airport Gel Scandal

The U.S. government seized 2,536 syringes of vaginal tightening gel at the Minneapolis airport. The shipment had originated in Hong Kong and was headed for a residential address in Woodbury, Minnesota.

Packaged in pink, the gel-filled syringes were ready for retail distribution. But despite the packaging, Customs and Border Protection procedure demanded the use of chemical-resistant gloves for handling.

CBP coordinated with the Food and Drug Administration in seizing the shipment for violations of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. The retail value of the product is estimated at $19,000 or about $7.50 per package.

The FDA is concerned, apparently, because who knows what people are putting in their vaginas in Hong Kong? The Pink Packaging Paradox: according to the Director of CBP’s Chicago Field Office Operations, unregulated gels are a danger the government is protecting you from.

Not knowing what you are inserting in your body can be deadly.


Credit: Customs and Border Protection


Credit: Customs and Border Protection

I’m not sure what happened to ‘my body, my choice’?

If you’re a U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer at Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport, a major hub, you’ve seen it all. Or so you thought. Enter the shipment from Hong Kong: 2,536 pink-packaged syringes of vaginal tightening gel. Not just a few samples, but thousands. Do you smile, or seize the packages and prosecute them? Or bring them home for a fun Saturday night? The choice is yours. But choose wisely.

(HT: Paul H)

About Gary Leff

Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel - a topic he has covered since 2002. Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »

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Comments

  1. Seems like this was a commercial cargo catch.

    Commercial volume of unvetted, unclearly and perhaps questionably sourced imported goods marketed for body applications are a potential health risk to the public.

  2. They were enroute to mrs GUWONDER….
    After all these years behind the gas station, well, it was time….

  3. So many good things in the instructions. A few:

    1. “Raise the hips” and then insert the goo but then get up and wash your hands and throw the applicator away but also “keep hips raise (sic) 5-10 minutes”. Surely, the goo will come out when you get up to wash your hands, yes?

    2. “For external use only” but jam it up your hoo hoo and squeeze out the goo

    3. My favorite: if you are a virgin please avoid using it – a virgin would be the last person who would need vaginal tightening gel!!!

  4. There are going to be a lot of people unhappy that things are not going to be as…ahem…rejuvenated as they were hoping.

  5. Doug,

    Didn’t know you had married me and had gone LGBTQ+, but thank you for claiming your goods for below your belt.

  6. TSA removed a car battery charger from my checked bag. They called it Hazmat.

    Maybe they thought it was a Transformer like in the movies?

    If only there were a way to appeal the decision to someone with at least half a brain, but there isn’t.

  7. @nsx, if it was an old style one, they were probably after the copper resale value of it. I took one of the new style electronic car chargers with no problem.

  8. Just read the “ingredients” list of this product, which looks like a bunch of mumbo-jumbo pseudo-Latin words, and not the typical ingredients one would find in a lubricant gel..

    I say good call, CBP !

  9. @Garyv – So you’re a fan of Invermectin? Like this catch, that’s an unregulated medical procedure. After all, your body your choice, no?

  10. Christian,

    I think the esteemed blogger prefers that there are rules about ingredients and labeling in a variety of products but maybe finds it hard to admit government labeling regulations and restrictions on ingredients is what helps him to blog longer for all of us.

  11. nsx,

    Car batteries that are wet or spillable batteries are not allowed as checked-in or cabin baggage unless they are part of scooter or wheelchair for medical reasons. And even then it’s supposed to be declared to the airline so that the airline can either pack it or advise on how to pack it before it’s checked in or carried on board for the flight.

  12. Maybe the TSA thought the car battery charger was a car battery or restricted lithium battery if they didn’t think it was a wet/spillable car battery or wet/spillable car battery charger.

  13. @Christian

    You do know Invermectin is a Nobel prize winning medication that has saved millions of lives? Not saying it is/was useful for covid. But it is actually far more effective in its intended purpose than any of the Covid vaccines. Just because the idiot Trump mentioned it doesn’t mean the medication isn’t useful. Stop parroting false information.

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