Two cities in China have found traces of coronavirus in frozen-food imports.
Samples taken from frozen chicken wings imported from Brazil and shrimp from Ecuador have both tested positive for the virus.
While the number of COVID-19 cases continues to rise, the discoveries are causing concern that the disease can spread on surfaces and enter the food chain.
One day before the Chinese announcement, Reuters says officials in New Zealand started to investigate whether the first COVID-19 cases there in more than three months were imported by freight.
The World Health Organization downplayed the risk of the virus entering the food chain.
While viruses can survive as long as two years in temperatures of minus four degrees Fahrenheit, scientists and officials say there is no strong evidence that the coronavirus can spread through frozen food.
“People should not be afraid of food, food packaging, or delivery of food,” says Mike Ryan, the Head of Emergencies Programming for the WHO.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and USDA issued a joint statement saying that “there is no evidence that people can contract COVID-19 from food or food packaging.”
