In July 2020, people across the United States and Britain reported receiving unsolicited packages containing plant seeds that appeared to have been sent from China and elsewhere.
Agricultural authorities warned recipients not to plant them because of possible risks to agriculture, ecosystems, and plant quarantine, while investigators also considered the possibility of a “brushing scam” designed to generate fraudulent online reviews.
This article records a Newsweek Japan report published on July 29, 2020.

2020-07-29
In July 2020, authorities in several U.S. states received reports that residents had unexpectedly received packages containing unidentified plant seeds, apparently sent from China.
Agricultural officials, including those in Washington State, warned recipients not to plant unknown seeds and asked them to report the packages because of potential agricultural and ecological risks.
Similar cases were reported in Britain, with some packages allegedly labeled as containing items such as “earrings,” “piercings,” or “flower petals.”
Authorities also raised the possibility of a “brushing scam,” in which inexpensive merchandise is sent without being ordered so that online sellers can create false positive reviews using recipients’ identities.
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2020-07-29
China—and likewise the Korean Peninsula—is a land of “unfathomable evil” and “plausible lies”…The following is from the online edition of Newsweek, and I regard this incident as proof that what I have repeatedly said is entirely correct.
Ever since I first appeared here in July 2010, I have continued to describe China—and likewise the Korean Peninsula—as lands of “unfathomable evil” and “plausible lies.”
As readers know, I have referred to this as the conclusion reached by the late Tadao Umesao, one of the world’s leading ethnologists and anthropologists, after conducting fieldwork over several years while living in almost every province of China.
By coincidence, I have been putting into practice one of his memorable sayings: “Repetition is originality.”
The following is from the online edition of Newsweek, and I regard this incident as proof that what I have said is entirely correct.
“Mysterious Seeds” Are Being Sent from China to the United States…Authorities Warn: “Do Not Plant Them”
Wednesday, July 29, 2020
＜In the United States and Britain, people have been receiving unsolicited plant seeds apparently sent from locations in China, creating growing concern…＞
Unordered seeds arriving at private homes across America
In the United States, a mysterious phenomenon has attracted attention: people are receiving plant seeds they never ordered, apparently sent from locations in China.
The items arriving at private homes in the United States appear to be plant seeds shipped from China.
The mailing envelopes bear the words “China Post” and Chinese writing.
Some recipients have also reported that the return address was in China.
Washington State agricultural authorities wrote on Twitter that they had received reports from residents who had received seeds from China that they had not ordered.
They warned recipients not to plant the seeds and asked them to report the packages to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
Profile image (the profile page opens in a new Twitter tab)
WA St Dept of Agr
@WSDAgov
We have received reports of people receiving seeds from China that they did not order. If you receive them – don’t plant them. Report to @USDA_APHIS at https://aphis.usda.gov/aphis/ourfocus/planthealth/import-information/sa_sitc/ct_antismuggling
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The New York Times reported that agricultural authorities in at least Louisiana, Kansas, and Virginia, in addition to Washington State, had issued similar statements.
Similar packages were also reportedly being received in Utah, Arizona, and Ohio.
Louisiana agricultural authorities issued a statement titled “Mysterious Seeds Received by Louisiana Residents,” explaining that bags of seeds from China were being sent to residents without being ordered.
The authorities warned that similar incidents were occurring in other U.S. states and in Britain.
“At this time, we do not know what kind of seeds are inside,” the statement said.
Because officials needed to determine whether the seeds might pose a danger to Louisiana agriculture or the environment, they urged anyone who received an unordered package to contact the authorities immediately.
The mysterious package labeled “earrings”
FOX13, a Utah local station affiliated with the FOX television network, reported the case of Lori Culley.
Culley said that when she saw an unfamiliar package labeled “earrings,” she initially opened it with excitement.
Inside, however, were some kind of seeds.
Puzzled, Culley posted about the package on Facebook.
At least 40 people then contacted her to say that they had received the same kind of package.
After doing her own research, Culley found reports of similar seeds being sent to Britain and told FOX13 that they appeared to be invasive foreign plants.
Utah and many other U.S. states regulate seed imports in order to protect ecosystems and the environment.
The British tabloid Daily Mail reported similar cases in Britain.
Packages labeled as containing “piercings” or “flower petals” reportedly turned out to contain seeds that recipients had never ordered.
Because seed imports are also regulated in Britain, it was suspected that such descriptions had been used in an attempt to bypass quarantine procedures.
A gardening enthusiast named Westerdale told the Daily Mail that the COVID-19 lockdown had prompted many people to begin growing vegetables in their gardens.
Because shops were closed during lockdown and she did not know where to buy seeds, she purchased some through online marketplaces such as Amazon Marketplace and eBay.
Although the sellers were supposedly based in Britain, she later received seeds she had never ordered from China and Serbia.
Like Culley, Westerdale became suspicious and posted the story on Facebook.
She reportedly heard from hundreds of people who said they had had the same experience.
Could it be a brushing scam?
The Whitehouse Police Department in Ohio suggested that the mysterious packages might be connected to a “brushing scam.”
Although the department said that very little information was available, it posted a warning about the mysterious seeds from China on its Facebook page because it wanted to alert people as quickly as possible.
After investigating, the department said that the seeds were highly likely to be connected with a type of fraud known as “brushing.”
A brushing scam is a form of online fraud in which inexpensive products are sent to people without being ordered, after which sellers use those recipients’ names to post favorable online reviews as though the recipients themselves had written them.
The department said that recipients did not appear to face any immediate direct danger from the seeds, but asked them to contact authorities promptly so that the seeds could be disposed of properly.
It also said that similar packages appeared to have been sent to locations across the United States, although the reason for the phenomenon remained unclear.
According to FOX13, Jane Rupp, head of the Utah branch of the Better Business Bureau, also believed that the packages were connected to a brushing scam.
Although she said she had never before heard of seeds being used in such a scheme, she advised people to search their own addresses on Google.
“When you Google your own address, all sorts of things can come up, and sometimes it can be frightening,” she said.