At Miami International Airport an army or federal inspectors are usually used to clear imports and exports bound for the US. and around the world. These are not usual times.
As a result of the government shutdown, non-essential employees at agencies including the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Consumer Product Safety Commission have been furloughed.
Despite some inflammatory allegations on social media, food and other items are still being inspected for contaminants.
But inspections at major ports of entry like Miami International are taking longer than usual. The inspectors who are working are not without paychecks - and do not know when their next one will come.
That means the shelf-life of fresh products coming from overseas - onions, avocados, bell peppers, flowers - may be at risk, according to Milay Rodriguez, traffic and import supervisor at Customized Brokers, a logistics company near Medley. Sixty-three percent of perishables and 89 percent of all flowers entering the US. pass through Miami International.