FARGO - Authorities have seized about 275 pounds of khat, a leaf chewed for its methamphetamine-like high, that was being delivered to this area. Four people were arrested.

The street value of the seizure was estimated at about $50,000, police said Monday.

Authorities say khat is becoming more popular in the United States with the influx of refugees from Somalia and Yemen. It is considered a major export in parts of Africa.

Khat leaves, which can be brewed or chewed, contain the drug cathinone. Khat has been illegal in the United States since 1993.

Police say khat is packaged in bundles with about 40 roots per bundle, and the bundles usually are wrapped in banana leaves to keep them fresh. A bundle of leaves generally sells for about $50.

Khat has been seen in large cities on the East Coast since the 1980s, but not in Minneapolis until the late 1990s.