US confirms there is no COVID-19 transmission via food or packaging.
“There is no credible evidence of food or food packaging associated with or as a likely source of viral transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus causing COVID-19,” the US Department of Agriculture, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention emphasized in a joint statement released on February 18.
The agencies declared, “Our confidence in the safety of the US food supply remains steadfast.” “Consumers should be reassured that we continue to believe that the foods they eat and the food packaging they touch are highly unlikely to spread SARS-CoV-2,” according to the overwhelming consensus of international scientists and based on our understanding of currently available reliable scientific information.
The statement credited to Acting FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock, MD, and Acting Secretary of Agriculture Kevin Shea at the time was appropriate given the ongoing claims by Chinese health officials and state media that the COVID-19 outbreak in Beijing in June and even the country’s first outbreak in Wuhan in December 2019 may have been caused by virus traces on imported frozen food or frozen food packaging. China has been denying reports that the worldwide pandemic started there.
In recent months, Chinese authorities have increased their inspections of frozen food imports; as a result, some shipments have been refused due to allegations that COVID-19 traces were discovered on the packaging. The European Union, Canada, Brazil, and the United States, among other trading partners of China, claimed that China had not provided any proof to support its decision to refuse some shipments of frozen food or that any virus residues on frozen food or packaging could potentially infect people.
The announcement also followed remarks made by Peter Ben Embarek, PhD, who headed the scientific team from the World Health Organization that was recently in Wuhan looking into the causes of the first COVID-19 outbreak in China.
In a press conference on February 9, shortly before the team left China, Dr. Ben Embarek confirmed that animals—possibly farmed non-domesticated animals—were the most likely source of the virus, as has long been assumed. However, he added that it might be “worth exploring” to consider the possibility that the virus could inadvertently infect humans through contact with frozen foods or frozen food packaging that shows signs of the virus.
However, even if it were possible for someone to contract COVID-19 from virus traces on frozen food or packaging, Dr. Ben Embarek stated in an interview with Science magazine upon his return to Geneva that this would not have contributed to the Wuhan outbreak.
“In recent months, China has reported a few cases where they were able to isolate the virus and obtain positive samples from frozen imported goods,” Dr. Ben Embarek stated. However, that was in 2020, a year in which outbreaks of the virus were occurring in food factories all over the world and when it was widely circulating globally.
“It is most likely a very uncommon occurrence. From just a few dozen positive results in China, out of 1.4 million samples collected so far, we can see that. It’s worth investigating because it might be feasible. However, we must distinguish between the circumstances surrounding imported goods in China in 2020 and the circumstances in 2019, wherein that introduction route was not feasible. Globally, there were no significant COVID-19 outbreaks in food factories.
Unlike foodborne or gastrointestinal viruses, like norovirus and hepatitis A, which frequently cause illnesses through contaminated food, COVID-19 is a respiratory illness that is spread from person to person through the air, according to a statement released by Mr. Shea and Dr. Woodcock on February 18.
“The majority of studies focus primarily on the detection of the virus’ genetic fingerprint rather than evidence of virus transmission resulting in human infection, even though there are relatively few reports of the virus being detected on food and packaging,” they continued. “The chances of infection by touching the surface of food packaging or eating food are considered to be extremely low, given that the amount needed for infection via oral inhalation would be very high and the number of virus particles that could theoretically be picked up by touching a surface would be very small.”
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“Despite the billions of meals and food packages handled since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, to date there has not been any evidence that food, food packaging, or food handling is a source or important transmission route for SARS-CoV-2 resulting in COVID-19,” Mr. Shea and Dr. Woodcock cited in their statement in reference to the Sept. 3 opinion issued by the International Commission on Microbiological Specifications for Foods.
“Moreover, given the over 100 million COVID-19 cases, we have not observed epidemiological evidence linking food or food packaging to the human transmission of SARS-CoV-2,” Mr. Shea and Dr. Woodcock said. Furthermore, national and international surveillance systems have not linked transmission to food products or packaging. Following current GMPs and preventive controls, food business operations continue to provide a consistent supply of safe food with an emphasis on worker safety and good hygiene.
“The USDA and FDA continue to be confident in the safety of the food available to American consumers and exported to international customers, based on the scientific information that has been made available throughout the pandemic,” Mr. Shea and Dr. Woodcock stated.