Market watchdogs act quickly on imported food coronavirus scare
Officials check the import records of packaged shrimp at a cold storage area.
More than 400 samples of imported food collected from nine districts have tested negative for coronavirus, Shanghai's market watchdog has announced.
As of Sunday morning, 476 samples of imported food such as aquatic products and relevant environment samples collected from nine districts have all tested negative to the coronavirus, the Shanghai Administration for Market Regulation said.
Shanghai's market watchdogs have ordered the immediate suspension of sales of frozen shrimp imported from three Ecuadorian producers after sample inspections showed coronavirus contamination, authorities said on Saturday.
On Saturday, nearly 4,000 food businesses citywide were inspected, including 1,620 aquatic product sales businesses, 900 supermarkets, 222 food manufacturing companies, as well as food wholesale markets, central kitchens and cold storage units, according to the administration.
On Friday, the General Administration of Customs told a press conference that one sample, collected from the inner wall of a container carrying frozen white shrimp from Industrial Pesquera Santa Priscila S.A., and a product outer packing from both Empacreci S.A. and Empacadora Del Pacifico Sociedad Anonima Edpacif S.A. tested positive for the coronavirus.
Customs has ordered frozen shrimp produced by the three companies after March 12 to be returned or destroyed.
