How much does a bushel of Apples weigh?

From the Farm Bureau of Georgia:

The standard is 40 pounds for a bushel of Apples.

https://bringbackthefarm.blogspot.com/2015/08/how-many-pounds-in-bushel.html?m=1

From the USDA:

48-pound bushel of barley, buckwheat, and apples

1 bushel = 0.024 short ton 1 short ton = 41.667 bushels
1 bushel = 0.021 772 metric ton 1 metric ton = 45.9296 bushels
1 bushel = 0.021429 long ton 1 long ton = 46.667 bushels

But then in Table 6 they say:

Apples: Bushel, basket or carton: 40 pounds.

https://www.ers.usda.gov/webdocs/publications/41880/33132_ah697_002.pdf

There appears to be a number of sources that throw around the 48 pound number, and some that throw around a vague "42-48 pound" number.

I think the vague answer is due to some people using the VOLUME measurement of "bushel". This of course would give you different weights of your bushel, depending on size and density of fruit, etc.

As for why some sources say 40 pounds and some say 48, perhaps it's because the USDA link above is contradictory.

At least, all recent data appears to point to 40 pounds being the answer. There is evidence that it was 42 pounds back in 2000. Why they change it is beyond me:

https://www.nass.usda.gov/nh/pdf/00apples.pdf

What is a bushel of apples?

Bushels are used these days for weight rather than volume.

Bushels are now most often used as units of mass or weight rather than of volume. The bushels in which grains are bought and sold on commodity markets or at local grain elevators, and for reports of grain production, are all units of weight.[4] This is done by assigning a standard weight to each commodity that is to be measured in bushels. These bushels depend on the commodities being measured and the moisture content.

Other specific values are defined (and those definitions may vary within different jurisdictions, including from state to state in the United States) for other grains, oilseeds, fruits, vegetables, coal, hair and many other commodities.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bushel

'The Economist Desk Companion', in a list of 'old measures in selected countries' gives a bushel of apples as 48lb in the USA, 45lb in Canada, 42lb in Australia and 40lb in New Zealand. A list of 'historical measures in the UK' shows a 'bushel or case' of apples as 40lb.

A bushel is a measurement of volume. The conversion to weight varies from
country to country. Therefore universally, the weight of a bushel of apples
depends on what kind of apples are in it. See:
www.dictionary.com

As Brainy Blonde said a bushel is a unit of volume, the British bushel being 2,219.36 cubic inches - 3.21% bigger than the American bushel which is 2,150.42 cubic inches.
I too found loads of references to 42 pounds to the U.S. bushel, however as I pointed out my 48 pounds is the U.S. Federal standard, so I can't argue with that.