BRYAN, Texas — The recent spread of coronavirus to ice cream in China may raise concerns once again of how the virus is spread.
Food can test positive for coronavirus. But one local health expert said you do not need to be concerned.
“The virus can live in the air for several hours. It could live on cardboard for about 24 hours and on other surfaces like plastic or stainless steel, it can live for several days,” said Texas A&M School of Public Health's Dr. Marcia Ory.
Dr. Ory said it is highly unlikely coronavirus can be transmitted to humans through food, but you should still remain cautious and practice your sanitary protocols.
“If you go to the grocery store and come home, wash your hands. Wash the counter. Some people get a wipe like a Clorox wipe and they treat it like a sponge, and they keep using the same wipe over and over. That’s not what you want,” said Dr. Ory.
She added that the suggested cleaning is once to three times a day and pay extra attention to heavily touched areas.
When you are using cleaning products to wipe down the counter, make sure to wait for them to dry before you start touching the surface again.
“If you’re using any kind of disinfectant, first and foremost you want to make sure that it is EPA registered, that you’re not just using some off brand chemical that is going to kill what you need it to kill,” said MaidPro Operations Manager Lindsey Gomez.
Some high touch areas that need to be disinfected more often include doorknobs, light switches, remotes, and phones. When you are cleaning, make sure you are not reusing dirty supplies.
“If you’re using microfiber rags to clean, you do want to wash them after every single time that you use them. A lot of people use Clorox wipes and Lysol wipes and obviously those are just one and done. If you can find those great, use them to disinfect, but if you are using your own rags and cloths, you’ll want to wash them every single time,” said Gomez.
For work spaces, both Ory and MaidPro suggest you clean before and after a new person enters the environment.