At some time in the last year the following question might have crossed your mind “Can COVID be passed on via food or food packaging?” In comparison with other viruses, very little is known about COVID-19’s ability to survive on cardboard or plastic, and there is as yet no evidence of food or food packaging being associated with its transmission. Yet as Prof. Nourredine Benkeblia (Dept. of Life Sciences & The Biotechnology Centre) explains in an article entitled “In the landscape of SARS-CoV-2 and fresh fruits and vegetables: The fake and hidden transmission risks” recently published in Journal of Food Safety,therisk, even though close to improbable, cannot be completely and definitively discarded or ignored.

In general, during cultivation, crops might be contaminated by viruses introduced into soils by manure or green fertilizers, faecally contaminated irrigation water, animals and insects, or even workers themselves. After harvest, contamination may result from poor or inadequate hygiene practices during handling, transportation and storage. Various studies have also shown that viruses may still be present on fresh, refrigerated, or frozen contaminated crops under retail and/or household storage conditions. This presence will vary depending on the storage duration, and might represent a risk for the consumers if still present on fresh crops prior to their consumption. So the possibility of disease transmission via these routes cannot be excluded for any virus.

 Based then on “what we know about COVID-19 and similar respiratory viral diseases, it may be possible that persons can get COVID-19 by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching their own mouth, nose, or possibly their eyes.” However, as explained in the research, this risk is very low (or in other words very rare) but still cannot be excluded. The recommendation? Prof Benkeblia suggests that to slow down the spread of the virus, to protect our families and communities, and to save lives, good hygiene practices must be practiced by all in the processes leading to food reaching our tables. There must also be thorough washing of fresh fruits and vegetables that will be eaten raw. Though these actions may seem small, they are important steps toward victory against COVID-19. Indeed, the article suggests, in the fight against viruses, it is often small actions that make the biggest difference.

Read the article: Noureddine Benkeblia (2021). In the landscape of SARS-CoV-2 and fresh fruits and vegetables: The fake and hidden transmission risks. Journal of Food Safety. 

Full article: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jfs.12898?af=R

Check out the Department of Life Sciences: https://www.mona.uwi.edu/lifesciences/

Check out the Biotechnology Centre: https://www.mona.uwi.edu/biotech/