U.S. says no evidence of contracting COVID-19 from food, food packaging

June 24, 2020

“Efforts by some countries to restrict global food exports related to COVID-19 transmission are not consistent with the known science of transmission,” Secretary of Agriculture Perdue and FDA Commissioner Hahn said today in a joint statement, in a thinly veiled swipe at China, which has issued warnings to global exporters dealing with outbreaks among employees.

There is “no evidence that people can contract COVID-19 from food or from food packaging,” the statement said.

China recently issued a ban on poultry shipments from a plant owned by Tyson Foods following infections at the site in Arkansas, and wants food exporting companies to sign documents stating that they comply with safety standards to prevent transmission of the virus.

While meat companies in Brazil and Europe have signed China’s requested affidavit, many U.S. exporters have been reluctant to do so for fear of liability, but Tyson yesterday became the first major U.S. company to confirm it signed the certificate.

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https://seekingalpha.com/news/3585978-u-s-says-no-evidence-of-contracting-covidminus-19-from-food-food-packaging