The mystery seeds that have been showing up in the mail from China and other countries are now being seen in Illinois. The Illinois Department of Agriculture released a statement Tuesday asking anyone who receives seeds they didn’t order to contact them. People are asked to hold on to the seeds but not to plant them or open them.
“We are currently working with USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) to address reports of unsolicited shipments of seeds from foreign countries. Anyone who receives unordered seeds in the mail should contact the Illinois Department of Agriculture by emailing the following information to [email protected]: First and Last Name, Phone Number and the number of packages received. Do not open the package, plant the seeds, or throw them out. Please keep all seeds unopened and with their original packaging and labels, including mailing labels, until further instruction is provided.”