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USDA receives 243 reports of mysterious seeds in Nevada

Federal and state agriculture officials said they’ve received more than 200 reports of mysterious seeds from China arriving at Nevada houses.

By Thursday, the Nevada Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Agriculture had received 243 reports of Nevadans finding unsolicited seeds in their mail, according to USDA spokeswoman K. Cecilia Sequeira.

The department warned in a Facebook post July 27 that across the nation, packages often labeled as jewelry from China were showing up at homes and instead were full of seeds.

The USDA opened a webpage devoted to the phenomenon where residents can report any delivered seeds and are given instructions for what to do with the seeds.

“Our main concern is the potential for these seeds to introduce damaging pests or diseases that could harm U.S. agriculture,” the webpage said. “It is important that we collect and test as many seeds as possible.”

Residents are asked to place the entire package, including the packaging that came with the seeds, into a mailing envelope and include their name, address and phone number so officials can contact the resident.

Contact Sabrina Schnur at sschnur@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0278. Follow @sabrina_schnur on Twitter.

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