A male golden Labrador mix is sitting in the floor of a shipping facility with a leash and Agriculture black vest looking up at his handler.
A male Agriculture/Weights & measures Standard Officer inspect a shipment of fresh cut flowers at a packaging center.
A female Agriculture/Weights & Measures Standards Officer inspects fresh cut flowers at a shipping facility.
A box of succulent plants are being prepared for shipping
A shipping warehouse conveyer belt with packages are being sorted by workers in yellow shirts.

Pest Prevention Division

The Pest Prevention Division includes several programs whose mission is to prevent the introduction of foreign pests. The Pest Exclusion Program is considered the first line of defense in fighting against foreign pests.

The best way to manage these pests is to deny them access. All commercial and many non-commercial shipments of plants and other goods capable of moving pests into the County are inspected.

Infested shipments and items in violation of the plant quarantine regulations are either returned to the sender, treated to remove the pest risk or destroyed. Inspections are made at nurseries, moving companies, trucking firms and common carriers such as UPS, FedEx, OnTrac and the post office.

Despite our best efforts, pests can slip through our inspections on undeclared goods or by smuggling. Through Federal funding, the department has a canine team trained to sniff out unmarked packages containing fruit and plant materials.

Pest Prevention Programs