US changes how it charges for fruit and vegetable import inspections

The US Department of Agriculture is changing how it charges for inspecting imported fresh fruits and vegetables. Instead of a flat fee per truckload, importers will now pay based on the weight of the produce.

This change means that smaller shipments of imported produce will likely pay less for inspections, while very large shipments might pay more. The goal is to make the fees more accurately reflect the actual cost of inspecting different quantities of food. This could slightly shift the economics for importers of various sizes.