COVID-19 infections transmitted via packaged fruit or packages sent by mail are unlikely, an infectious-disease expert said yesterday, reacting to reports of an employee at a fruit and vegetable wholesale market in Taipei testing positive for the virus.
Kuo Shu-chen (郭書辰), as assistant researcher and physician at the National Institute of Infectious Diseases and Vaccinology, urged people to remain calm, saying there have been no reports of the virus being transmitted by packages of food products.
Research using nucleic acid testing has found traces of the virus on packaging, but not the virus itself, Kuo said.
Photo: CNA
“Traces of the virus refer to the inactive virus, the dead virus,” Kuo said.
The environment in which the packages are transported is usually inconducive to the virus’ survival, he said.
Nonetheless, people who are concerned about the safety of packages they receive should sanitize them before opening, Kuo said, adding that fruits and vegetables could be cleaned with specific cleaning solution or boiled before ingestion.
Fruits where the rind or peel is usually not eaten, such as pineapples, bananas or watermelons, pose an especially low risk, he said.
Other fruits such as strawberries could be sprayed with 75 percent medical-grade alcohol and washed with water before ingestion, he said.
People could also order produce online to avoid crowds at shops and markets.
Citing an incident of people in Taichung being infected with COVID-19 after visiting KTVs, Kuo said that they must have come into contact with virus-laden surfaces, for example in a restroom.
They might not have been observing adequate disinfection practices, he added.
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