see also: in February 2008:   Marijuana Seized by CBP Officers at San Luis, Ariz. Port   Border Patrol in Tucson Seizes 4 Tons of Marijuana   CBP Officers in Philadelphia Discover Venomous 8-Legged Stowaway   Arizona Event to Assist Border Patrol Applicants   Departments of Justice and Homeland Security Announce International Initiative Against Traffickers in Counterfeit Network Hardware   Border Patrol Apprehends 62 Illegal Migrants Hiding in Arizona House   CBP Officers in Calif. Find Smuggled Women in Truck Engine Compartment ...more on cbp.gov:   CBP News Releases   Press Officers

contacts for this news release

New York — U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agriculture specialists are making sure that the bouquet of flowers you order for your sweetheart this Valentine’s Day is free from insects, pests, and diseases that could harm the agricultural and floral industries in the United States.

In 2007, CBP agriculture specialists at JFK International Airport inspected over 81 thousand shipments of imported fresh cut flowers and intercepted 5,332 plant pests within these shipments.

New York’s JFK ranked second, after Miami, among U.S. international airports for shipments of cut flower imports in 2007; Los Angeles is third.

Whether it’s rare orchids from Thailand or tulips from the Netherlands – the two leading types of cut flowers imported at JFK in 2007 - it is the job of the CBP agriculture specialist to carefully inspect them before they get to the florist, the grocery store, or the sidewalk stand. CBP agriculture specialists are specially trained to examine flowers, plants and fresh herbs for signs of insects, pests or diseases. When shipments are contaminated with pests, they are returned to the country of origin, fumigated, or destroyed.

On a typical day in fiscal year 2007, CBP nationally seized 4,296 prohibited meat or plant materials, including 164 agricultural pests at port of entry.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.