Luxembourg's Ministry of Agriculture, Viticulture and Rural Development has issued a warning over unsolicited postal deliveries of seed packages.
The European Commission informed the ministry that in several EU countries (i.e. France, Germany, Ireland and the Netherlands) as well as in the United States, people have received unauthorised seeds mainly originating from China, Singapore, Taiwan, Vanuatu and Malaysia via post, even though they had not ordered them. The import of plants and their derived products into the EU remains subject to EU regulation 2016/2031 on protective measures against organisms harmful to plants.
These unauthorised packages have been found to contain the seeds of several plant species as well as other plant residues. They can also contain insects, larvae and fungal structures or even soil. The ministry recalled that these represent a danger for the local flora and fauna and must not be sown under any circumstances.
Anyone who receives a shipment of seeds which they had not ordered is asked not to open the package and to contact the Administration des services techniques de l'agriculture - Service de la protection des végétaux (16 Route d'Esch, L-1470 Luxembourg) via tel.: 457-172205 or email: Phytopathologie@asta.etat.lu.
