FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

Sounds like the same rules would apply. If you do find out more, I'd be interested in hearing about it. I recently acquired one myself that had a baby division in there I potted separately. I intended to give it away if it survived. It's getting the tough love treatment outside but most of it is still green.

Loop holes are indeed numerous and somewhat ridiculous. For example, CITES aside, say you have a friend in Canada you wish to send some non-CITES plants to. There are a some prohibitive hoops to jump through and expenses beyond simple postage. However, if that friend has friends or family in the States, they can have the plants sent to their friends/family, drive across the border, pick them up, and drive back over the border with no problem. The number of plants is limited to something like 10 plants but still.....

I had a friend who was selling N. Rajahs and Oreos and was paid a visit by a USDA inspector. Just be wary. USDA inspectors have federal jurisdiction, powers of arrest, and are able to investigate you with a warrant(or probable cause but I don't know what 'probable cause' is when you grow plants. (No, not THOSE plants, carnivorous plants). That said, many shops sell oreos and rajahs across state lines. I'm sure there's ways around it but don't take my advice as I am not an agricultural lawyer.

ChefDean wrote: ↑Fri Jan 22, 2021 5:29 pm

hungry carnivores wrote: ↑Fri Jan 22, 2021 5:10 pm I had a friend who was selling N. Rajahs and Oreos and was paid a visit by a USDA inspector. Just be wary. USDA inspectors have federal jurisdiction, powers of arrest, and are able to investigate you with a warrant(or probable cause but I don't know what 'probable cause' is when you grow plants. (No, not THOSE plants, carnivorous plants). That said, many shops sell oreos and rajahs across state lines. I'm sure there's ways around it but don't take my advice as I am not an agricultural lawyer.

Was he selling intrastate or interstate? Federal only applies when you cross state lines, they have no jurisdiction if it stays within a state.
What happened with the investigation? Was he arrested? Cited? Given a stern talking-to? A warrant or probable cause isn't needed to talk to someone, but it is necessary for a search or arrest.
I've seen some shops advertising Oreos and such, but they also clearly state that they have the proper permits to do so. I'm assuming they have proven whatever they need to in order to gain those permits. Then they charge accordingly.

Well yeah, he was selling across state lines. I kinda thought it would be obvious since otherwise that is state jurisdiction but thank you for clarifying.
Since he was a minor he was given a stern talking to, they didn't even confiscate the plants. From what i heard he was asked 'have you sold these plants across state lines' and he said 'yes' and they said, 'well you have to stop unless you want to pay thousands of dollars in fines'.
I thought the only shop able to do so was Meadowview or NASC. Hm, maybe I can apply for a permit and then import rajahs from wistuba for cheap?

hungry carnivores wrote:Hm, maybe I can apply for a permit and then import rajahs from wistuba for cheap?

After ordering a S. oreophila from Meadowview this summer, I decided to apply for a permit myself, just to see what was involved and if I could acquire one. If I could acquire one, I could legally sell some of the S. alabamensis and S. jonesii I grow. I applied in September and still have nothing.

I just checked the status and it states "In RO for Review" which means it is being reviewed by the Regional office where I applied. I wonder if they'll complete the process in less than a year?!!

@Matt, I remember asking Mike Wang about it one time when I was on this endangered kick and he said that he had applied and it got lost in the red tape or it was going in circles, something to that effect. He ultimately decided to give up on it. I hope it does work out for you though because you have a reputation already and that'd probably be awesome for business if you could get some good clones.

@Apollyon, interesting. I hadn't asked Mike about his experience with applying for a permit to sell endangered species. I'll have to ask him about it next time we "chat" (email). I'm not overly optimistic that I'll be granted a permit, but if I am, I'd love to offer some good clones of endangered species by propagating them in tissue culture. That's basically what I said on the application. I'll post back here if I ever hear back from the FWS.

Trading in general is a really great thing actually, however being successful at it, is not that easy, not at all.

ilsaban wrote:Trading in general is a really great thing actually, however being successful at it, is not that easy, not at all.

It's one of the best parts of the hobby. Unfortunately, it is sometimes hard to tell what someone is about through a screen. What I can say however, is this particular community has been very good and the vast majority are great/honest people(Everyone I know is). I've had a couple of experiences where members reached out to inform me of potential issues. It's a unique and great aspect of FTC. Hopefully you have better experiences going forward.