Last updated: October 26, 2026
This page explains what information Panama Tropic (panamatropic.com) collects when you visit, why, who else receives it, and what choices you have. The site is run by Artur and Margoth, a couple based in Chicago, Illinois. When this policy says “we,” “us” or “our,” it means the two of us. If you have a question about anything here, email us at info@panamatropic.com.
The short version
- You can read everything on this site without giving us your name or email.
- The site shows ads from Google AdSense. Google and its partners use cookies to show and measure those ads.
- We use Google Analytics 4 and Jetpack Stats to see which pages are useful.
- Some links are affiliate links (for example, Amazon). If you buy something after clicking one, we may earn a small commission.
- If you subscribe to our newsletter, use the contact form or email us, we get the details you send and use them only to reply or to send you new posts.
- We don’t sell your information for money. Some ad cookies may still count as “selling” or “sharing” under certain US state laws, and you can opt out (see below).
Information we collect
Information you give us
- Newsletter: if you sign up, we collect your email address (and your first name, if you enter it). Signup records also include the date, time and IP address used, so we can show that you agreed to subscribe.
- Contact form and email: if you use the contact form or email us, we get your name, email address and whatever you write in the message.
- Comments: if you leave a comment, we collect the name, email and website you enter, plus your IP address and browser details to help catch spam. Your name, website and comment are shown publicly; your email address is not.
Information collected automatically
Like almost every website, this one and the services it uses automatically receive some technical information when you visit: your IP address, browser type, device type, operating system, the page you came from, the pages you view, and the date and time of your visit. Our web host keeps server logs with this information for security and troubleshooting. Google and Automattic (the company behind Jetpack) receive similar information through the code described below.
Cookies
Cookies are small text files a website stores in your browser. This site uses them for a few reasons:
- Needed for the site to work: for example, remembering your cookie consent choice, or remembering your details if you leave a comment.
- Advertising: set by Google and other ad vendors to show ads, limit how often you see the same ad, measure results and, if you allow it, personalize ads.
- Analytics: Google Analytics 4 cookies (names starting with
_ga), used to count visits and see which pages are useful. - Embedded content: YouTube and other embedded services may set their own cookies when you load or play their content.
- Affiliate links: Amazon and other affiliate networks may set cookies after you click a link, so they can credit a purchase to this site.
You can block or delete cookies in your browser settings. The site will still work, but ads may be less relevant, and you may see the consent message again.
Advertising: Google AdSense
This site shows ads through Google AdSense. Ads help pay for hosting and the time it takes to cook, photograph and write.
- Third-party vendors, including Google, use cookies to serve ads based on your prior visits to this website or other websites.
- Google’s use of advertising cookies enables it and its partners to serve ads to you based on your visits to this site and/or other sites on the internet.
- You can opt out of personalized advertising by visiting Google Ads Settings.
- You can also opt out of some third-party vendors’ use of cookies for personalized advertising at www.aboutads.info or optout.networkadvertising.org. Visitors in the EU can also use www.youronlinechoices.eu.
If you opt out, you’ll still see ads; they just won’t be based on your browsing history. Google explains how it uses information from sites like this one here: How Google uses information from sites or apps that use its services. Google may work with other certified ad vendors, which you can see and manage through the consent message on this site.
The consent message
We use Google’s consent management tool, a Google-certified consent management platform, to ask for and remember your choices:
- In the EU, EEA, UK and Switzerland, a consent message appears on your first visit and asks whether you agree to cookies and data use for personalized ads, ad measurement and analytics. Cookies that need your consent aren’t set until you choose.
- In US states with privacy laws, you can opt out of the “sale” or “sharing” of your information for targeted advertising through the message Google shows in those states.
- You can change your choice at any time through the privacy and cookie settings link that Google’s message adds to the site, or by clearing this site’s cookies in your browser.
Analytics: Google Analytics 4 and Jetpack Stats
We use Google Analytics 4 (GA4), a Google service that uses cookies and similar code to report how visitors find and use the site: for example, how many people read a recipe, which page they came from, what country they’re in and what kind of device they use. We look only at totals and trends, not at individual people.
- IP addresses: GA4 doesn’t log or store IP addresses. Google uses your IP address briefly to estimate a general location (like city or country) and then discards it.
- Consent: GA4 follows the choice you make in the consent message. In the EU, EEA, UK and Switzerland, analytics cookies aren’t set until you agree.
- Opting out: you can change your choice in the consent settings, or block Google Analytics on every website with the Google Analytics opt-out browser add-on.
We also use Jetpack Stats, a WordPress tool from Automattic, to count page views. Jetpack also delivers our images through its content delivery network (i0.wp.com), which means your browser connects to Automattic’s servers. See Automattic’s Privacy Policy. To learn more about Google, read Google’s Privacy Policy.
Affiliate links
Some recipes and guides link to products on Amazon, and a few link to other sellers through affiliate networks such as CJ (Commission Junction) and Awin. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Some recipe pages also show Amazon product widgets, which load from Amazon’s servers. When you click an affiliate link, the seller or network may set cookies so it can credit the sale to this site. We don’t receive your name, address or payment details; we only see summary reports. The seller’s own privacy policy applies once you’re on their site. More details are on our Disclaimer page.
Newsletter (MailPoet)
Our newsletter runs on MailPoet, a WordPress plugin. We use your email address only to send new recipes, guides and occasional site updates. Newsletter emails may record whether they were opened and which links were clicked, so we can tell what readers find useful. Every email has an unsubscribe link, and you can also email us to be removed.
Contact form
The contact form is built with Jetpack Forms. Messages are stored in our WordPress dashboard and emailed to us so we can answer you. We don’t add you to the newsletter or any list just because you wrote to us.
Embedded content, sharing buttons and fonts
Many recipes include embedded YouTube videos. Embedded content from other sites behaves the same as if you visited that site directly: YouTube (owned by Google) may collect data, set cookies and track your interaction with the video, especially if you’re signed in to a Google account. The share buttons for Pinterest, Facebook and X are simple links; those services only receive information if you click one. Author pictures may load from Gravatar (Automattic). The site also loads fonts from Google Fonts, which means your browser connects to Google’s servers and shares your IP address with them.
Who we share information with
We don’t sell your information for money. Information is shared only with the services that make this site run:
- our web hosting company and our DNS and security providers, which process traffic and server logs;
- Google (AdSense, Google Analytics 4, YouTube, Google Fonts) and the ad vendors Google works with;
- Automattic (Jetpack Stats, Jetpack image delivery, Jetpack Forms, Gravatar);
- Amazon and other affiliate networks, when you click an affiliate link or load an Amazon widget;
- MailPoet and our email provider, for the newsletter and the messages you send us;
- authorities, if the law requires it, or to protect the site and its visitors from fraud or abuse.
How long we keep information
- Newsletter: until you unsubscribe. After that, we may keep a record of the unsubscribe so you aren’t added again by mistake.
- Emails and contact form messages: as long as needed to answer you and keep track of the conversation, usually no more than a few years, unless you ask us to delete them sooner.
- Comments: until you or we delete them.
- Analytics data: Google Analytics 4 keeps user-level and event-level data for the retention period set in our GA4 settings (14 months at most) and then deletes it. Summary reports may be kept longer.
- Ad data: kept by Google and its partners according to their own retention policies.
Children’s privacy
This site is written for adults. It isn’t directed at children under 13, and we don’t knowingly collect personal information from them, in line with the US Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). If you believe a child has sent us personal information, email us and we’ll delete it.
Your privacy rights in US states
Depending on where you live, state laws such as the California Consumer Privacy Act as amended by the CPRA (CCPA), and similar laws in Colorado, Connecticut, Virginia, Utah, Texas, Oregon and other states, may give you the right to:
- know what personal information we have about you and get a copy of it;
- ask us to correct or delete it;
- opt out of the “sale” or “sharing” of your personal information, or its use for targeted advertising;
- not be treated differently for using any of these rights.
Ad cookies used by Google and its partners may count as “selling” or “sharing” under some of these laws. To opt out, use the opt-out option in the consent message or the privacy settings link on the site, or turn on a Global Privacy Control signal in your browser. You can also use Google Ads Settings as described above. To make any other request, email us at info@panamatropic.com. We’ll need to confirm that the request comes from you, and we’ll reply within the time the law requires (usually 45 days). If we decline, you can appeal by replying to our answer. You can also use an authorized agent to make a request for you.
Your rights in the EU, EEA, UK and Switzerland
If you visit from the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom or Switzerland, the GDPR (or the UK GDPR) applies. Our legal reasons for using personal information are:
- Consent: for personalized ads, Google Analytics 4 cookies and the newsletter.
- Legitimate interests: to keep the site running and secure, answer your messages, moderate comments and show non-personalized ads.
- Legal obligation: where a law requires us to keep or share something.
You have the right to access, correct, delete or receive a copy of your personal information, to restrict or object to how we use it, and to withdraw consent at any time (this doesn’t affect anything done before you withdrew). You also have the right to complain to your local data protection authority (in the UK, the Information Commissioner’s Office). This site is run from the United States, so your information is processed in the US. Google, Automattic and the other services listed above use their own legal safeguards, such as the EU-US Data Privacy Framework or standard contractual clauses, for these transfers.
Security
We keep WordPress and its plugins up to date and limit who can log in to the site. No website is perfectly secure, though, so please don’t send sensitive information (like passwords or payment details) through the contact form or email.
Changes to this policy
If the site starts using a new service or changes how it handles information, we’ll update this page and the date at the top.
Contact
Panama Tropic, run by Artur and Margoth
Chicago, Illinois, USA
Email: info@panamatropic.com