Laura & Dave wrote: > 3) Sending a check with the order, made out to APHIS, for the cost of > one of the flat fee boxes that the post office offers, into which the > entire package could be placed. This eliminates the variable of postage > cost, and the accounting inherent therein. > 4) Your ideas?? > > While item #3 is probably the simplest under the currently available possibilities, it's overly expensive for most of the packets of seeds I've received where the total international postage has been less than the current price of the flat-fee priority mail boxes. Also, it would be nice (and legal) if there were an easy and inexpensive way to trade seeds with friends overseas where the (typically small number of) seeds are mailed in a regular letter-sized envelope, go through the inspection station first upon entry into the U.S., and then continue on their way to my home with a minimum of fuss or re-packaging or other additional effort on anyone's part. Maybe I wasn't clear about my suggestion in a previous email. I think it would be ideal if all packages or envelopes of seeds (or other plant materials) could be prepared for international delivery to the U.S. by writing the final destination address (my home address) on the outside of the package or envelope and immediately adjacent to it always placing a green and yellow label--which has the address for the inspection station on it. The label is very distinctive and hard to ignore. And it is about the same size as a typical address label, so should be just as noticeable. Then the postal service workers at ports of entry for international mail, would all be trained to place any package or envelope with the green and yellow label into a separate pile or stack. Or machine readers at the port of entry could easily be programmed to recognize the label, read the bar code, and divert all such packages and envelopes to the inspection station zip code. This is how it is currently done with the small green Customs Declaration label that is affixed to all packages (and letters over a certain weight) that are sent internationally. It seems that other countries aren't picky about where the green label goes on a package or envelope, but at every post office where I've mailed things overseas, the postal clerks I've ever dealt with go to great efforts trying to place that label right next to the destination address. We just need an analogous system for the green and yellow label. Then, after the inspection station has opened and inspected the item, they merely have to re-seal it, envelope or package, and mail it out with all their other mail. Since the final destination address is on the item already, the UPU (Treaty of Berne) obligations ensure that the item will be delivered to its final destination without further postage required. Anyway, that's my suggestion. Maybe Bill could suggest it to those who are discussing this issue. --Lee Poulsen Pasadena, California, USDA Zone 10a