Shortage of US truck drivers to increase produce prices

Each winter, the US relies on produce grown in Mexico to supply its stores, with over US$17 billion of agricultural goods crossing the border in 2016. One of the main entry points into the US is the border town of Nogales, Arizona, where the fresh produce is stored in coolers, and then distributed across the US. However, reports state that more than 1,500 trucks of US freight brokerage firms are currently sitting idle because of a lack of drivers.

Although there are plenty of Mexican drivers with valid US trucking licenses, they cannot move freely around the US. Instead, they have to go straight from Mexico to their destination in the US, which means they cannot stop in Nogales to pick up produce. Freight companies claim that many produce companies are going to move out of Nogales and find other ways to transport their products, leaving a lot of local workers out of a job and resulting in higher costs for the end consumer