At no other time in recent history have groceries dominated so many headlines. Major media outlets
are talking about everything from grocery shortages to grocery delivery to grocery workers
and how to shop for groceries safely.
What about when you get those groceries home though? The opinions on whether or not you
should sanitize your groceries are somewhat mixed, even among health experts. One video
made by physician Dr. Jeffrey VanWingen that advised washing fruits and vegetables with
soapy water, took the internet by storm and racked up millions of views. Benjamin Chapman,
a professor and food safety specialist, saw things differently, though, and said that
the risk of an upset stomach from ingesting soap wasn't worth it and advised against VanWingen's
recommendation.
"For me, I'm not treating my produce any differently than I would be if I was worried about food
safety in produce before."
VanWingen also advised that people keep their groceries in the garage for several days in
case the virus was on the packaging. Chapman also disagreed with this. He explained:
"We don't have any evidence that food or food packaging are transmission vehicles for coronavirus."
But wait just a second…The National Institutes of Health says on their website that because
SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, can live on cardboard for up to 24 hours,
that people could contract it through touching, quote, "contaminated objects." You also might
be wondering, "But what about other types of materials like plastic and steel?" Well,
we've got some bad news…
"According to the New England Journal of Medicine, the virus can linger on plastic and steel
for three days. That includes containers, door knobs, even toys."
Does this mean we should spray everything we buy with Lysol and throw those potentially
deadly cardboard boxes in the trash before they can pass along COVID-19? Infectious disease
expert and President of ACCESS Health International, Dr. William Haseltine, told People that food
packaging poses little risk of virus transmission and sanitizing your groceries might be, quote,
"a little too much."
The USDA says that so far, they're, quote, "not aware of any reports at this time of
human illnesses that suggest COVID-19 can be transmitted by food or food packaging."
That's somewhat reassuring, except for those words "so far." It's always a good idea to
rinse your produce when you get it home, though, especially in these strange times.
Food microbiologist Donald Schaffner agreed with his colleagues that there's no evidence
COVID-19 is spreading through food or food packaging. Taking the extra step to clean
your groceries just isn't necessary, in his opinion. He said:
"I am not recommending disinfecting your groceries. This seems like being overly cautious."
The downside is that, while most experts agree there's little chance of transmission through
food or food packaging, there's still a lot to learn about the virus. While Schaffner
believes that food transmission of coronavirus is unlikely, he told The Guardian, quote,
"That doesn't mean we might not learn new evidence tomorrow that would change our thoughts
on that."
Probably the safest measure, for now, is to practice proper safe shopping at the grocery
store or while getting food takeout/delivery. The safest thing is to avoid close contact
with others and to do your best to keep that social distance of six feet at all times.
"While you're shopping, make sure you maintain that social distance of approximately six
feet for your safety and the safety of others."
And again, wash those hands! If you can avoid using cash that's also probably a good idea.
Cash has always been a haven for germs and if you can pay with your card or through a
phone app, all the better.
So while most experts say that sanitizing your groceries isn't believed to be necessary
at this point, what if you do want to be overly cautious, just in case?
If you're super worried about your groceries' packaging being contaminated, Dr. Haseltine
suggests that you "wear gloves when you open the packages." You may also want to place
any grocery or food delivery bags on the floor or in the sink rather than on your countertops
when unloading them. And, as always, wash your hands thoroughly after handling said
bags.
The main takeaway here is that while sanitizing your groceries isn't necessary at this time,
washing your hands frequently and disinfecting surfaces in your home is your best precaution
against transmission.
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