At least 28 US. States have reported people receiving unsolicited packets of seeds. This includes Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Georgia, Nebraska, Nevada, Texas and several other American states. 

Thousands of people in these states have spotted mystery seeds wrapped in envelopes at their doorsteps.

Similar cases have been reported in Britain and Canada. Hundreds of gardeners in the UK have received deliveries they didn’t pay for, nor asked for. Even Canadians are receiving packages from sources they have never heard of.

Officials in the US, Canada and Britain don’t know for sure whether they are part of a hoax, a prank, an internet scam or an act of bioterrorism. But what they have agreed upon is the likely source of these seeds.

Police officials across the US have reported spotting Chinese characters on these packets of seeds.

In Belfast, Ireland, a woman has reported receiving seeds as early as June. She said the envelope she received was marked with Chinese characters but had a return address in the Netherlands in Europe.

The packets appear to be Chinese but there’s no concrete proof of their source yet. The authorities investigating the matter are yet to establish a direct link to China.

Meanwhile, China says it would investigate.