Customs seizure of illegal inbound plant seedlings

From April 20 to May 20, by taking its “Green Bud” Action, Shenzhen Customs intercepted 19,811 batches of plant seeds and seedlings illegally carried or mailed inward from 36 countries/regions including Australia, the United States, South Korea, Guinea and Japan; Customs detected pests in 1,136 batches, with quarantine pests in 123 batches, from those seeds and seedlings.

The intercepted seeds and seedlings involved more than 300 varieties, including seeds of beans, vegetables, flowers, spices and sky fruit, plus large quantities of fruit seedlings, ornamental plant seedlings, unknown seedlings, and cut-flowers with reproductive capacity. They were usually wrapped in waste newspapers and put in backpacks or reusable bags for concealed entry through the passenger or postal channels.

In the seeds and seedlings, the Customs Lab detected a large quantity of pests such as nematodes and mealybugs. Illegal carry by passengers is one of the channels for inbound invasive alien species, posing a serious threat to original ecological balance in the import region.