Florida Department of Agriculture Warns of Suspicious Seed Packages Being Mailed To Residents From China
Although planting strange seeds worked out for the main character in “Jack and the Beanstalk,” officials are warning people who receive an unsolicited packet of seeds in the mail against doing the same.
The Florida Department of Agriculture says it’s received more than 160 reports from people who say they’ve received the strange packages, which are marked with Chinese characters.
.@FDACS has received 160+ reports of suspicious seed packets mailed from China.
— Commissioner Nikki Fried (@NikkiFriedFL) July 27, 2020
If you receive unsolicited seeds by mail, don't open or plant them. Report it to:@FDACS Plant Industry: 888-397-1517 & DPIhelpline@FDACS.gov@USDA_APHIS: 800-877-3835 & SITC.Mail@aphis.usda.gov
Because the seeds appear to come from another country, Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried says recipients shouldn’t attempt to grow them in Florida — or anywhere else in the U.S.
“Plant seeds from unknown sources may introduce dangerous pathogens, diseases or invasive species into Florida, putting agriculture and our state’s plant, animal, and human health at risk,” she says. “Anyone receiving these suspicious seed packets should not open them, should not plant them, should limit contact with them, and should report them immediately.”
