No evidence COVID spread through food packaging

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No evidence COVID spread through food packaging

The USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service, FSIS, says there is no evidence to support transmission of COVID-19 associated with imported goods. The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization agrees. China claims it has found the virus on product packaging from 20 countries.

An FSIS spokesperson tells Brownfield Ag News COVID-19 cannot be transmitted by food or food packaging and there are no reported case in the U.S. associated with imported goods.

The spokesperson says FSIS personnel in plants who are ill with COVID-19 or any other illness are excluded from work activities that could create unsanitary conditions like coughing or sneezing on products.

The FAO’s chief economist reportedly has said reports of the spread of COVID-19 need to be minimized because they threaten trade.

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