If You Get A Mysterious Package of Seeds From China, DO NOT PLANT
The year 2020 will go down in history for so many reasons. Everything from the COVID-19 pandemic, to Asian Murder Hornets, to self-cloning ticks, it all seems like a plot for a science fiction movie. And, the year is far from over.
In a very strange twist of events, people in Kentucky, Indiana and 26 other states are reporting that they have received mysterious packages in the mail from China. These are packages they never ordered and are completely unsolicited. The packages contain seeds with no other information, contained, regarding the seeds.
The seeds even have made their way to Evansville.
At this point, the types of seeds are unknown and officials at the Kentucky Department of Agriculture and the Purdue Extension Office in Evansville, IN are warinng the seeds may be harmful. DO NOT PLANT, BURN or THROW AWAY.
At this point in time, we don’t have enough information to know if this is a hoax, a prank, an internet scam, or an act of agricultural bio-terrorism. Unsolicited seeds could be invasive and introduce unknown diseases to local plants, harm livestock or threaten our environment. If you have received such a package, do not plant the seeds and immediately contact the Kentucky Department of Agriculture
If you have received suspicious packages with seeds, in Kentucky, put them in an airtight bag and ship the seeds to:
United States Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service's division of Plant Protection Quarantine at USDA-APHIS PPQ
P.O. Box 475
Hebron, KY, 41048
You are also asked to contact the Kentucky Department of Agriculture at (502) 573-0282 or e-mail ag.web@ky.gov.
[SOURCE: KDA]
If you live in Evansville or the surrounding area, please take the package to the Purdue Extension office.