Nearshoring volume increases challenge as methamphetamine seizures at U.S. borders increase

As of this writing, CBP announced Tuesday that agents at the Laredo Port of Entry had seized more than 50 pounds of meth from a vehicle crossing the border. It was valued at more than $773,000.

It’s not just Laredo. According to CBP data, more than 145,000 pounds of meth have been seized at all U.S. ports of entry so far for the 2024 fiscal year that ends Sept. 30. That’s up from more than 140,000 pounds of meth seized during the same period last year. CBP has also seen an increase in marijuana crossing the border, with 155,000 pounds seized so far in 2024 compared to 150,000 pounds last year.

On the other hand, cocaine and khat – a flowering shrub native to Africa used as a stimulant – have seen large drops in seizures at all ports of entry. Cocaine has fallen from over £81,000 in 2023 to just under £54,000 so far in 2024. Khat has fallen from over £70,000 seized in 2023 to just under £55,000 so far this year.

Over the past three years, the total number of drugs seized by CBP has decreased significantly. In 2021, for example, CBP reports seizing 913,000 pounds of drugs. So far this fiscal year, 451,000 pounds have been seized, about half the amount seized in 2021.

According to Flores, CBP always calls Homeland Security Investigations when drugs are seized. They must then speak with the driver of the vehicle to determine if there is any liability for smuggling the prohibited items, or if they were hidden in the vehicle without the driver’s knowledge.

“About 85 percent of the cargo we handle here at the Port of Laredo comes from the interior of Mexico,” Flores said. “A lot of times (the investigation into guilt) depends on how and where the drugs are hidden. In this case, the agent will determine if there is involvement or not.”

Flores and his colleagues at CBP have seen drug cartels try a variety of ways to smuggle contraband across the border, from methamphetamine wrapped in lettuce to cocaine disguised as watermelons.

“The drug cartels are going to evolve in the same way that CBP is evolving in the technology that we need to be able to scan these items,” Flores said. “You look at shipments of legitimate furniture and products. Sometimes we see drugs hidden in the sides of the (truck) trailers. Sometimes we even see duffel bags of narcotics either thrown in the trailer or in a location right next to where the driver is operating the (vehicle).”

Regular products are checked for cross-contamination during drug seizures at the border. Flores said these items are destroyed if they are found to be contaminated. If there is no damage to the products, CBP works with the parties involved to transship the product to its destination.

Checking cargo at the border

Flores said CBP uses a tiered enforcement approach to its inspection process, meaning CBP must have cargo information at least an hour in advance for every truck entering the port.

“That will allow our team of officers to review that data and then determine whether we want to see that cargo in our secondary inspection area or whether we want it to proceed to the gate,” Flores said.

During the inspection, officers look for signals such as nervousness on the part of the driver, unusual appearances and indications that the trailer or the locks and seals of the product containers have been tampered with.

“It varies by truck, but generally speaking there are multiple areas within the import process where the truck is inspected,” Flores said.

He said improvements in transaction technology are valuable because they allow agents to collect all cargo information at once.

“I think CBP as a whole has made tremendous strides in providing all the information they have about a specific shipment,” Flores said.

Screening tools available to law enforcement include drug-detecting K-9 dogs, cameras, X-rays and other drive-through systems called multi-energy portals (MEPs). Flores said his port has two new MEPs that trucks can drive through. The devices perform a low-energy scan for the tractor, followed by a higher-energy X-ray scan for the trailer.

“The beauty of this new technology is that the truck drives through, the footage is then sent to a control center where agents analyze the footage. By the time the truck gets to the primary cab, it’s already determined whether that truck is going to go to the secondary cab or whether it’s going to continue on to the U.S. trade,” Flores said.

Challenges in nearshoring

According to Flores, the biggest challenges for CBP lately are the large amount of cargo crossing the border at all ports of entry.

While U.S. companies continue to nearshore across the border to produce goods in Mexico, Flores said his port has seen a 3% to 5% increase in cargo crossing the border every year since 2010 — with the exception of 2020 during the pandemic.

“With this nearshoring, not only will Laredo be impacted by the increased volumes of freight, but I think the entire southern border will be impacted,” Flores said. “By implementing measures and technology to address the threat, which will include the installation of the multi-energy gantries in the pre-primary area, the use of these systems to be able to scan and review images before the truck arrives for primary inspections, will be huge for our layered approach that’s being applied across the southern border.”

CTPAT, FAST and the Supply Chain

To enhance security and make the screening process smoother, Flores strongly encourages drivers and companies to work with CBP through the Customs and Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (CTPAT) program.

CTPAT is an agreement between participating companies and CBP, established after 9/11, to protect the supply chain, identify security gaps, and implement specific security measures and best practices. CTPAT partners receive several benefits to better identify their own security vulnerabilities and take corrective actions to mitigate risk. Some of the benefits include:

“Recently, the Port of Laredo, through a public-private partnership with the City of Laredo, opened four new lanes that are specifically dedicated to the FAST cargo that we handle here at the Port of Laredo,” Flores said. “It’s pretty significant when you look at the cargo that we handle here. Thirty percent of the cargo that we handle daily is brought to us through the FAST program, which is pretty impressive.”

Earlier this summer, the office of U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, announced plans to establish a new CTPAT office in Port Laredo. Flores said the office will be set up in the coming month and is expected to be operational by the start of the new fiscal year in October.

“Sixty-six percent of CTPAT members currently use the Port of Laredo as a gateway to import their cargo,” Flores said. “So you have existing CTPAT members using Laredo. And the likelihood of more people signing up for the program will obviously increase with people on the ground and available to meet with shippers and exporters who want to sign up for this program.”