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Even when adhering to recommendations to stay indoors as much as possible, obtaining food remains essential, requiring regular trips to the store or opting for deliveries. While the thought of bringing food packages from outside into your home might cause anxiety, it's crucial to note that the likelihood of contracting the coronavirus from the surfaces of your groceries, though not nonexistent, is extremely minimal.
For those seeking extra caution, certain measures can be taken to reduce the risk further. However, some individuals are taking excessive precautions, as seen in a widely shared video where a doctor aggressively sanitizes his groceries.
The CDC does not advise sanitizing groceries in its coronavirus safety guidelines, and the World Health Organization also does not recommend it in theirs. In a document released on March 24 addressing COVID-19 concerns in the food supply, the FDA explicitly stated: “There is no evidence to suggest that human or animal food, or food packaging, is linked to the transmission of the coronavirus causing COVID-19.” Although our understanding may evolve, current knowledge indicates that groceries, similar to mail and packages, pose a very low risk.
To provide a more scientifically grounded perspective on grocery shopping safety, we turn to Donald Schaffner, a faculty member in the Department of Food Science at Rutgers University.
Schaffner’s recommendations stem from his extensive background as a food microbiologist.
First, it’s important to note that the CDC report suggesting the virus can remain detectable on surfaces for up to 17 days is based on the detection of viral RNA—not necessarily live, infectious virus particles. The presence of viral fragments doesn’t equate to the presence of a viable virus capable of causing infection. Additionally, the CDC’s 17-day claim lacks detailed methodology and relies on personal communication, which in scientific terms is akin to hearsay. Without access to the original data, the accuracy of this claim remains uncertain.
Ensuring the safety of your groceries doesn’t require leaving them on the porch or in the garage for days. For perishable items such as milk or ice cream, this approach could lead to spoilage, creating a separate safety concern.
Using soap to wash fruits and vegetables is strongly discouraged, as consuming soap can lead to nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Given the current circumstances, we certainly don’t need additional health concerns to worry about.
If you’re worried about the potential for virus contamination on your groceries, Schaffner suggests the following precautions:
Apply hand sanitizer both before entering and after leaving the grocery store.
Reduce the amount of time spent inside the store and limit interactions with others.
Rinse fruits and vegetables under cold water (avoid using soap).
Frequently wash your hands, particularly after touching packaging.
It’s important to keep in mind that contracting an illness from handling groceries would require two conditions: First, the groceries would need to be contaminated with active viral particles; and second, merely touching the packaging would have to result in infection. This chain of transmission can be interrupted in several ways, most simply by washing your hands after handling packages and before eating—a practice that’s beneficial even outside of a pandemic.
This article was revised on 3/30/2020 to include the fact that the CDC, WHO, and FDA also advise against sanitizing groceries. Additionally, the embedded tweet was replaced with a more relevant one from the thread.
