Shanghai customs intercept desert locust for first time

Shanghai Customs said they have intercepted a desert locust in a wooden package from western Asia, the first time such a species was found at China's border ports.

The desert locust is considered the most devastating among the nearly one dozen species of locusts. It can travel at a speed up to 150 km a day and a one-square-km locust swarm can eat the same amount of food in one day as about 35,000 people.

Since 2019, a continued locust invasion has seriously affected several East African countries including Ethiopia, Sudan and Kenya, causing an unprecedented threat to food and economic security.

As of Thursday, no locust threat had been found in Shanghai.

Customs officers told Xinhua that they have recently toughened plant quarantines and inspections of imported cargo to prevent bio-invasions.

Shanghai Customs have also intercepted other pests such as a fruit fly and over 10 European spruce bark beetles. Both species have the ability to rapidly reproduce and can pose grave threats to the environment.