In January, U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized packages at Los Angeles International Airport that contained 37 large beetles concealed among Japanese snacks. The agency warned that these pests pose a significant threat to U.S. agriculture, as they can damage crops and forests. It is illegal to import such insects without appropriate permits from the USDA. Similar incidents have been reported on the East Coast, emphasizing the ongoing issue of pest smuggling and its potential impact on the environment.
"They may look harmless but in reality, smuggled beetles pose a significant threat to our vital agriculture resources," Cheryl M. Davies, Customs and Border Protection's director of field operations in Los Angeles, said in a statement.
It's illegal to bring them into the U.S. without a proper permit from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service's Plant Protection and Quarantine organization.
On the East Coast, a similar discovery was made at John F. Kennedy International Airport in Queens, New York, according to the agency.
Thirty-seven beetles, measuring about 4 to 5 inches in length, were counted in the shipments that arrived from Japan in January, according to Customs and Border Protection.
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