That not right! I have over the years received powder by UPS and other shippers. All it's come in is a cardboard box, beaten up and sometime just barely hanging together, likewise with ammo. Sometimes they have to tape the box back together. So it's not being handle with TLC by a long shot nor handle differently. The people that aren't on the know are scare of powder. I haven't seen any UPS trucks with a stove in them to cook up a hot meal either. Powder needs open flame and in a compress area to do anything. Otherwise it just burns up and no bang.
It's not a matter of shipping costs, it's the hazmat charge that really doesn't belong there. The charge may have come from Sick Willy. To Store Powder in a fire prof box only needs to be 3/4" thick wood to enclose the powder. That gives it's a 1 hour fire rating. "Look it up the net. I always compare prices that includes the cost of shipping, including hazmat to see if it a deal. Or I bend over and close my eyes.
SSS
You're basing your opinion on a statistically insignificant sample of 1. I can assure you that hazmat packages are handled differently based on the 16 years I've spent as a contractor for FedEx. There are restrictions on how, where and how many hazardous packages can go into van. There are restrictions on how the packages are moved in the building. Then there's the paperwork which must be reviewed and verified by a trained individual at the station. Added handling means added expense and somebody has to pay for that.
Implying that powder "just burns" isn't very accurate either. Having a fast and hot burning fire in an enclosed space full of cardboard and other potentially dangerous items (which drivers may or may know about) is a dangerous situation. All the hazmat regulations are put in place to protect drivers and anyone else on the road, not for political reasons. Hazmat fees aren't getting paid to the government and there are more efficient and effective ways they could restrict access to powder and primers.