Customs maintains guard on frozen food imports

A series of measures to strengthen management of imported frozen food in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic have been taken by the General Administration of Customs.

In a statement issued on Sept 8 the administration said it has notified or held teleconferences with authorities in 105 countries and regions since the pandemic began, asking that they prevent frozen food and its packaging contaminated with the novel coronavirus from being exported to China.

The administration has also conducted "remote sample tests" through video links, and had tested samples from 76 food companies in 30 countries and regions by Sept 7, it said.

By the same date, it had halted imports of frozen food from 56 food companies in 19 countries after their staff members were found to have contracted COVID-19, the statement said, adding that 41 of those companies had taken the initiative to suspend food exports to China.

Customs across China had tested more than 500,000 samples of imported frozen food by Sept 7, with the tests covering the food itself, the inner and outer packaging and the interior of containers, the administration said.

In July, six samples collected from the outer packaging and containers of food imported from Ecuador tested positive for the virus.