Novel Coronavirus Found on Frozen Seafood Packaging in China

• Chinese authorities found coronavirus on the packaging of frozen seafood in eastern Shandong.
• The goods came from Dalian, a major port north east of Liaoning, which had a surge of Covid-19 cases in July.
• Three Yantai companies purchased the said products, which were subsequently processed for export.
• The city government quarantined the people who had contact with the items and had them tested for the virus.

Chinese authorities found novel coronavirus on the outer packaging of imported frozen seafood in Yantai, a port city situated in eastern Shandong province.

Reports say three companies from the city purchased the products on Tuesday. In a statement, the Yantai city government said that the goods turned up in Dalian, a major dock found in the northeastern province of Liaoning. However, they did not disclose where these had previously originated.

Dalian customs officers likewise found coronavirus on the packaging of frozen shrimps last July. The shipment apparently came from Ecuador.

Consequently, the Chinese government suspended imports from three Ecuadorian shrimp producers.

Dalian city’s latest surge of coronavirus occurred in late July. The first case reported was from a seafood processing company.

According to the Yantai city government, the companies that bought the frozen seafood had processed some of the items for export. It remains unclear, however, if they had already been shipped abroad. A staff from a coronavirus response unit in the city refused to elaborate, referring Reuters to the city government’s statement.

Meanwhile, they kept the rest of the frozen seafood products in cold storage.

Authorities sealed the frozen goods off according to the city government. They quarantined those who had contact with the products and had them tested for the virus thereafter. Their results were negative.

The novel coronavirus presumably originated in a seafood and wildlife market in Wuhan, China last year. It has then turned into a global pandemic. Some new cases in the country may have been from returning travellers.