He asks Texans to remain vigilant and report unknown seed packages to TDA

AUSTIN – Today, Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller reported that the Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) was alerted to a case in Frisco, Texas, where a resident’s address was fraudulently used as the return address on boxes containing several unidentified seed packages. The sender reportedly used Stamps.com to disguise the packages’ source, resulting in recipients sending the unwanted packages back to the return address and the Frisco resident being inundated with returned boxes they did not pack or ship.

“If you receive a package of seeds that you did not order, do not send it back to the listed return address,” said Commissioner Miller. “Instead, please report those packages to TDA immediately and hold onto them until we can pick them up. Even if the sender appears to be from Texas, the true source could be from China or anywhere. This serious issue could have severe consequences for your health and the biosecurity of Texas agriculture. We need everyone’s cooperation to catch and report these incidents.”

The Frisco, TX resident initially received and returned 10 boxes containing unknown seed packages to their local post office. The resident has received 5-10 seed packages daily and has several more boxes that TDA has gathered for inspection and disposal. The actual sender of these boxes is currently unknown. Still, with several other packages recently being delivered across the country from China, Texans are urged to remain vigilant and continue to report any unsolicited seed packages they receive from any source.

TDA will continue gathering and delivering all seed packages to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) for identification and testing. The contents of these packages will be destroyed through steam sterilization at no cost to the recipients. TDA’s partners at APHIS will share the detections with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) partners to identify and halt similar small mail packages from the same sources.

If you receive any unsolicited package containing seeds, do not open it. Keep the contents sealed in their original packaging and immediately contact the TDA toll-free at (800) TELL-TDA.