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Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says she has been informed that New Zealand’s beef exports were stocked with products from Argentina, which tested positive for Covid-19 in China.
Reuters reported that, over the weekend, the Chinese city of Jinan found coronavirus in beef and tripe and its packaging from Brazil, Bolivia and New Zealand, while two other provincial capitals detected it in pork packaging from Argentina .
Ardern said the Chinese authorities had not informed her but was determined to “get to the bottom of this” on Monday.
“We were informed that some New Zealand products were in the same fresh store where the positive tests were returned. We were not informed that New Zealand products had tested positive for Covid-19, so we are currently looking for more information on what was reported in the media, “he said.
“This is incredibly important to New Zealand. We are confident that our products are not exported with Covid in them given our Covid-19 free essential status. “
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The Foreign and Trade Ministry said Chinese authorities have not officially informed New Zealand of a coronavirus detection.
“New Zealand officials are now working to determine the origin and veracity of these reports,” a ministry spokesman said in a statement.
New Zealand exported $ 3.173 billion of meat and edible offal to China in the year ending in September, accounting for 38 percent of total meat exports and making it the country’s largest meat export market, according to Stats NZ.
Alden Williams / Stuff
Reuters reported that over the weekend, the Chinese city of Jinan found coronavirus in beef and tripe and in its packaging from Brazil, Bolivia and New Zealand.
Sirma Karapeeva, Executive Director of the New Zealand Meat Industry Association, said: “We are aware of reports from China that the outer packaging of some imported frozen cattle has been found to have traces of genetic material from Covid-19 and we are waiting for more information from the Chinese authorities.
“The risk of transmission of Covid-19 from food or food packaging is negligible,” he said. “The advice of the World Health Organization is that transmission by droplets and aerosols in the air is the dominant pathway for Covid-19 infection.”
The Reuters report said China has been increasing testing on frozen foods after repeatedly detecting the virus in imported products, prompting the halt of import bans, even as the World Health Organization says the risk of contracting Covid-19 from frozen foods is low.
In Jinan, the capital of east China’s Shandong Province, the goods involved were imported by a unit of Guotai International Group and Shanghai Zhongli Development Trade, the city’s municipal health commission said on Saturday, according to the report.
They entered through the ports of Shanghai, he said, without naming the companies that shipped the products to China. More than 7,500 people who may have been exposed tested negative for the coronavirus, according to the report.
Karapeeva said that the New Zealand meat industry was closely watching and reviewing international developments on transmission and following advice from the Ministry of Primary Industries and experts from the New Zealand Food Safety Scientific Research Center on how it responded to these emerging risks as knowledge about the virus grows.
“The red meat processing sector is committed to protecting our people and doing everything possible to prevent the spread of Covid-19,” he said.
Supplied / Supplied
The executive director of the New Zealand Meat Industry Association, Sirma Karapeeva, says the risk is “negligible”.
“Since the early days of the response to Covid-19, the industry has been working with strict protocols that were developed with the Ministry of Primary Industries and provide guidance and a minimum standard for the operation of processors.
“The protocol, which is consistent with other industries and the guidance of the World Health Organization, means that we have a strong first line of defense against transmission of the virus.
“Per protocol, employees are observing physical distancing and, in situations where this is not feasible, additional controls are put in place, including personal protective equipment. Employees undergo temperature controls.
“Companies are also tracking who is working on the site and on which team or bubble. This is to facilitate tracking and tracing to allow a quick response in the event of a positive Covid-19 case, so that we can help keep our people, their families and communities safe. Contact surfaces are also regularly disinfected. “
