Georgians warned not to open or plant mysterious seeds sent in mail from China

State officials are warning Georgians to be on the lookout for packages containing mysterious seeds sent in the mail.

The Georgia Department of Agriculture said it has gotten several reports of people receiving these packages in recent weeks.

The department said it doesn’t know what type of seeds are in the packages. But it believes they are possibly from China and may be an invasive species.

Georgians are urged not to open the package or plant them.

“At this time, we are not sure what the seeds are and therefore are urging everyone to be exceedingly vigilant,” Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Gary W. Black says. “If you have received one of these packages in the mail, please use extreme caution by not touching the contents and securing the package in a plastic bag.”

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Channel 2 investigative reporter Nicole Carr spoke with Black, who said scores of Georgians have reported the packages.

“We understand from USDA that there have been some consumers that they’ve reported back that they’ve opened the seeds. They’ve gone to their backyard and actually planted them, which is just beyond comprehension to me,” he said.

Laura Romines in Clayton County told Carr that she received a package of seeds in May and didn’t know what to do with them.

“When I opened it up I was like ‘What in the world is that?‘”

The USDA is working with states to figure out what these seeds actually grow into. Here in Georgia, a lab in Tifton is testing them.

Black is warning people to double bag the seed packages and get in contact with the state for a drop off or pick up.

“You can get into a scenario like this, where you have the introduction of a invasive species. That could be have a deleterious effect not only to agriculture,” he said.

“They could get into the gravel. Get into other plants. Spread across varieties and that would be a very devastating effect to our crops,” said Lewis Sharpe, the co-owner of Premiere Growers in Gwinnett County.

The state and recipients have an idea of how the seeds are being addressed to certain individuals.

“Well maybe it’s because you can order stuff on Amazon or Ebay and it’s drop shipped from China. That’s what I’m hoping any way. I’m hoping it’s not a security breach or something,” Romines said.

The department shared these photos of what Georgians should look for along with the Chinese writing.

Anyone who received unsolicited seeds in the mail is asked to contact the GDA Seed Lab at 229-386-3145 or email SeedLab@agr.georgia.gov

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