Twenty kilos of meth found in green tea packets at Auckland Airport

A man has been charged after 20kg of methamphetamine was discovered hidden inside vacuum-sealed green tea packets at Auckland International Airport yesterday.

Customs said a 36-year-old foreign national arrived on a flight from Bali and was identified for a baggage search during processing.

"An examination of tea packets inside the bag revealed a white crystalline substance that tested positive for methamphetamine," a spokesperson said.

Customs estimated the intercept prevented up to $21 million in social harm and the seized drugs had a street value of around $6 million.

The man was charged with the importation of a class A controlled drug and was due to appear in the Manukau District Court this morning.

Yesterday's bust was the third interception of illegal drugs at Auckland International Airport in under a week.

Last Friday, more than 60kg of methamphetamine was found in two unaccompanied duffel bags that arrived on a flight from Malaysia.

The bags contained 30kg and 30.3kg of meth respectively, with a combined street value of $22.6 million.

On Monday, a 25-year-old woman was arrested after arriving from Santiago, Chile, with 4 kilograms of cocaine hidden inside the panels of her suitcase.

She faced charges of importing and possessing a class A controlled drug with intent to supply.

The cocaine had an estimated street value of $1.55 million and its seizure was believed to have averted up to $1.49 million in social harm.