Bemused & Bamboozled — problems with importing thatch into the USA

Aug 3, 2008 by Sean

Recently, we’ve heard a few unsettling reports related to products with alang-alang (thatched grass) roofs.

Alang alang, if you’re not familiar with the term, is quite a common roof component in gazeboes; garden lanterns and tiki bars (as in the picture to the left).

On one occasion, a container with thatched roof was rejected in Hawaii and sent back to Indonesia (where it was not accepted by the authorities and is currently languishing… whereabouts unknown). In another case, the container was accepted into the US but after the thatched roofs were separated and incinerated by US customs.

After searching a little on the US Customs website and talking with a few customs brokers and shipping reps in the US, we’re still not able to find official confirmation that alang alang has been banned but we all agree that at this time, it’s not at all wise to try importing the thatched items.

Sean

[Update: December 28th, 2009]

You will also find a number of posts in our News & Updates pages related to “bamboo”.

You can start by searching “bamboo” (you don’t need the quote marks) in the search box at the top right of every page.

Other notable posts include:

Bamboo Root Masks

Bamboo Products

Bamboo Tiki Products and the Update on Bamboo Tiki Products

Also, as a reminder, all of our prices are online but you first need to logon at: http://www.indonesiaexport.com/logon.php. If this is your first visit to Indonesia Export (hello & welcome), we’re a wholesale only company based in Bali — please take a moment to fill out our contact form and we’ll send you details for accessing our prices.