A health worker wearing a protective mask works in a laboratory during clinical trials for a Covid-19 vaccine at the Research Centers of America in Hollywood, Florida, USA
Eva Marie Uzcategui | Bloomberg | Getty Images
It’s been a little over a year in the global Covid-19 pandemic and there is still “no credible evidence” that people can catch the virus from food or food packaging, US food and health officials said Thursday.
While there have been some scientific studies that have identified Covid-19 particles on food packaging, according to a joint press release from the United States, most of that research is to find the genetic fingerprint of the virus, not the live virus that is causing it Human Department of Agriculture, Food and Drug Administration, and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Transmission of the virus through food or food packaging is highly unlikely because the amount of virus particles a person could theoretically ingest by touching a contaminated surface is insufficient to produce an infection through oral inhalation.
Health experts around the world have come to similar conclusions, the officials said, noting that international scientists are constantly learning more about the virus.
“Despite the billions of meals and food packaging treated since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been no evidence to date that food, food packaging, or handling of food is a source or an important route of transmission for SARS-CoV-2 in COVID-19, “said a recent statement from the International Commission on Microbiological Specifications for Food.
More than 110 million people around the world have tested positive for the coronavirus. There are several ways to transmit and infect the virus, but global health experts agree that Friday night takeaway is probably not one of them.
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