(12 Feb 2020) Love and flower inspections are in bloom.
As Valentine's Day approaches, U.S. Customs and Border Protection agriculture specialists are taking a close look at stem-cut flower imports, hoping to catch any pesky pests hitching a ride.
At a secure facility near Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, specialists unboxed dozens of roses Tuesday and peered at the petals.
They shook and slapped the roses from Central and South America, hoping to break loose any insects that might have an adverse effect on people and agriculture concerns in the U.S.
"So, as we look through all of these things we're shaking them very gingerly so that the petals and everything are beautiful and that the bouquets when they arrive to your office, or to your loved one, that they arrive looking beautiful as ever," said Paula Rivera, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection port director in Atlanta.
Such inspections occur on a sampling of stem-cut flowers at various ports of cargo entry throughout the United States.
Valentine's Day and Mother's Day are the busiest times of the year for flower shipments, Rivera said.
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