The Western Growers Science team recently released a report that examines how imported fresh produce is regulated relative to domestic production and identifies opportunities to strengthen oversight of foreign suppliers. The analysis highlights structural gaps in inspection frequency, reliance on importer-based controls under the Foreign Supplier Verification Program (FSVP) and limited transparency into foreign compliance and enforcement outcomes. As imports continue to account for a growing share of the U.S. produce supply, the findings underscore the need for improved risk-based oversight, stronger verification mechanisms and greater data visibility to better align foreign supplier accountability with domestic food safety expectations. 

Key highlights from the report include: 

• Imported produce has grown substantially over the past three decades and now represents a significant share of U.S. fruit and vegetable availability. 

• FDA’s visibility into foreign suppliers is more limited than for domestic operations, including fewer foreign food safety inspections than domestic inspections.

• Oversight of foreign produce relies heavily on importers through FSVP, with limited publicly available data on program performance or outcomes. 

• Greater transparency around inspections, enforcement actions and compliance histories could support more effective risk assessment and prevention. 

• Continued collaboration across government, industry and international partners is essential to ensure imported produce meets the same safety expectations as domestic products. 

• Opportunities to strengthen foreign supplier oversight include targeted engagement, outreach, improved transparency, deeper analysis of enforcement and sampling approaches and refinement of risk-based oversight. 

To access the full report, click here.