Every cost layer in a Caribbean food wholesale price — FOB origin, ocean freight, CBI duties, cold chain, last-mile — explained with real numbers and worked examples for 2026.
Price at the origin port — supplier's manufacturing or sourcing cost, packaging, and loading onto the ocean container. Quoted in USD. The baseline before freight, duties, and handling are added.
20-foot container rates from Port-au-Prince, Kingston, or Santo Domingo to Miami or New York. Hurricane season (June–November) can add 10–14 days to transit. LCL ( Less-than-Container Load) available from $80–$180/m³.
HTS Chapter 21/22 rates of 2.2%–6.8% for most processed products. CBI-eligible goods (HTS ending in "98") often carry 0% duty. Customs broker handling runs $400–$800 per shipment.
Refrigerated containers add $800–$1,500 to ocean freight vs. dry. For ambient products needing cold storage, budget $0.40–$0.90/case/month for refrigerated warehouse in major metros.
Florida-based buyers have the lowest last-mile costs. Buyers outside the Southeast pay more but can reduce per-case cost through distributor consolidation and LTL pooling programs.
Products from CBI-designated countries qualify for reduced or eliminated tariffs under the CBTPA. Most processed Haitian and Caribbean food products fall under HTS Chapter 21 or 22, with CBI column rates of 0% for qualifying goods.
To qualify, products must be substantially transformed in a CBI beneficiary country — meaning the final product's HTS code differs materially from its component inputs.
Get a per-case breakdown including freight, duties, cold chain, and last-mile by US region.
FOB (Free on Board) is the price at the origin port — the supplier's cost for the product, packaging, and loading onto the vessel. Everything beyond FOB (ocean freight, customs duties, cold chain, last-mile delivery) is added on top to produce the landed cost. FOB is quoted in USD per unit (case, pound, or kilogram) and excludes any US-side costs.
Landed cost = FOB origin price + ocean freight + US customs duties (0% for CBI-eligible goods, otherwise 2.2%–6.8% under HTS Ch. 21/22) + customs brokerage ($400–$800/shipment) + cold chain surcharge ($800–$1,500 for reefer containers) + last-mile delivery to your warehouse ($0.60–$1.40 per case).
FOB (Free on Board) covers the product only at the origin port — buyer arranges and pays for freight and insurance. C&F (Cost and Freight) includes ocean freight to the destination port; buyer pays insurance separately. CIF (Cost, Insurance, and Freight) adds marine insurance to C&F. For Caribbean food imports, most US buyers use FOB quotes and arrange their own freight forwarder.
Products from CBI (Caribbean Basin Initiative) beneficiary countries — including Haiti, Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago, the Dominican Republic, and others — qualify for 0% US customs duty under the CBTPA when properly documented. Most processed Haitian and Caribbean foods fall under HTS Chapter 21 or 22 with CBI preferential rates. The supplier must include a CBI country-of-origin declaration in the shipment paperwork for the rate to apply.
Use the FoodStreamOS Import Cost Calculator at /tools/import-calculator. It itemizes each cost layer — FOB, ocean freight, customs duties (with CBI adjustment), cold chain surcharge, and last-mile delivery — by category, origin, and US destination region, giving you a per-case landed cost estimate without contacting a forwarder.
Full deep-dive into every cost layer — FOB, freight, duties, cold chain — with real product examples and worked calculations.
All-in cost breakdown for restaurants, retailers, and distributors — with category-by-category price comparisons.
CBI/CBTPA duty rates, HTS classification, APHIS requirements, and FDA import alert status for Haitian products.
Tell us what you're looking to source. We'll itemize each cost layer — FOB, freight, duties, cold chain — so you know exactly what you're paying before you commit.