Living coronavirus found on frozen food packaging for first time: China's health authority

China's health authority has confirmed detection and isolation of living vel coronavirus on outer packaging of imported frozen marine fish in port city of Qingdao, in what it described as first detection of its kind on cold food chain in world.

authorities in Qingdao, where a new cluster of COVID-19 cases were reported recently, conducted tests on all of its about 11 million population. new clusters of cases were found after tests, local authorities said.

In July, China suspended imports of frozen shrimp after dely virus was found on packs and inner wall of a container.  Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Saturday said it detected and isolated living vel coronavirus on outer packaging of imported frozen cod(large marine fish) in Qingdao.

finding was me during an investigation to trace source of recent infections reported in city. It has proved that contact with packaging contaminated by living vel coronavirus could le to infection, state-run Xinhua news ncy reported, quoting CDC statement.

statement, however, did t mention country from where pack was imported.  It is first time in world that living vel coronavirus has been isolated from outer packaging of cold-chain food, statement said.

ncy said risk of cold-chain food circulating in China's market being contaminated by vel coronavirus is very low, citing recent nucleic acid test results for samples taken from business.

A total of 2.98 million samples h been tested across country's 24 provincial-level regions by September 15, including 670,000 taken from cold-chain food or food packaging, 1.24 million from working staff and 1.07 million from environment.

Only 22 samples from cold-chain food or food packaging tested positive for virus, CDC said.

Meanwhile, National Health Commission on Sunday said 13 confirmed COVID-19 cases, all arriving from outside mainland, were reported on Saturday.

re was new locally transmitted COVID-19 case, it said.

Of imported cases, five were reported in Shanghai, four in Guangdong, two in Shaanxi and one each in Tianjin and Sichuan.

As of Saturday, total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases on mainland reached 85,672.

Altoger 80,786 patients have been discharged after recovery, while death toll stood at 4,634, Commission said.