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Shopping and COVID

(42 Posts)
chazwin Mon 01-Feb-21 10:35:38

How many wash all the food that comes into the house?
90% of all our shopping is now delivered.
We have a weekly ritual where all items are washed and drained.
I just wondered how many of you are also doing this?

It is not known how long COVID can stay infective on surfaces, but estimates can range for 2 hours to 9 days depending on conditions.

Tangerine Mon 01-Feb-21 10:38:00

I have never done this. Unless I am mistaken, there has never been any official advice to do so.

If it makes you feel safe, then keep doing it.

henetha Mon 01-Feb-21 10:41:33

I spray some things, tins, packets, post, etc, with anti-virus and anti-bacterial spray, or wipe them with anti-virus wipes.
And then leave them for a while.

Lexisgranny Mon 01-Feb-21 10:56:21

In addition to the usual fruit washing, we always wipe everything down with anti- bacterial wipes if the contents cannot be decanted into Tupperware boxes. However we have ‘decanted’ since the era of Aggie and Kim. All this has become a routine and generally takes the two of us about half an hour from the arrival of the supermarket delivery van. I don’t think we even consider it (after nearly a year) to be anything to do with covid, it’s just become a way of life.

Smileless2012 Mon 01-Feb-21 10:59:39

I don't do this either. I open any packaging and wash my hands before touching any of the contents.

Lilypops Mon 01-Feb-21 11:01:37

I still ash all the shopping I get delivered , it just makes me feeli am doing all I can to keep the virus away from my house, I wipe everything down with a solution of bleach , it is a bit of a faff , but I am not doing or going anywhere and I feel happier for doing it,
At least I know I have done my best to keep safe ,

maddyone Mon 01-Feb-21 11:12:31

We wash/wipe everything that comes into the house, and also my mother’s shopping which we add to our Click and Collect and then take round to her flat. It didn’t stop us getting Covid though as my mother contracted it in hospital after a fall, and as we are in a bubble with her, it passed to us after she was discharged from hospital having tested negative twice, but she was in fact positive. I spent twelve days in hospital very ill as a result of that.

LadyStardust Mon 01-Feb-21 11:19:20

I read somewhere last year, that an infected person would have to stand in front of a specific grocery item and cough constantly for quite a while in order to deposit enough virus to infect another person. I cant find the article now, but no I don't wash shopping, just my hands.

polomint Mon 01-Feb-21 11:31:26

When I first started getting online deliveries, I washed everything with soapy water, apart from fruit and veg. I stopped doing it when lockdown was lifted for a few weeks. Now I dont wash my delivery but have often wondered if I should start again

Calendargirl Mon 01-Feb-21 11:32:51

Never done it. Just wash hands well after handling anything and wash them well before dealing with any food I am going to cook or eat.

Blondiescot Mon 01-Feb-21 11:40:58

Calendargirl

Never done it. Just wash hands well after handling anything and wash them well before dealing with any food I am going to cook or eat.

Yes, this. I think you can take things too far - for some folk, it's almost getting into the realms of OCD.

M0nica Mon 01-Feb-21 12:02:20

What do you wash the food in? Just water will not be sufficient to remove the virus. Tins and packets will need to be wiped with antiseptic wipes. Any fresh food will need to be soaked in bleach or another disinfectant to remove any viral material present. You will then certtainly need to soak it in water to remove all the disinfectant/bleach

This will make the food uneatable, or at least exceedingly unpleasant. So, for the last 9 months, everything you have done has been either ineffecive or your food must have tasted awful.

Personally, I wouldn't bother.

rosie1959 Mon 01-Feb-21 12:03:11

Just wash my hands after unpacking I have never wiped down my shopping .

Cabbie21 Mon 01-Feb-21 12:13:24

At first I started wiping down shopping with wipes, but then I realised that though they were antibacterial, they would be ineffective against the virus. Even ones bought more recently labelled antiviral do not convince me, so I have stopped doing this, as it is pointless.
We store tins and packets initially in the garage, so by the time they come through to be used, they bear no risk. Before preparing food, and several times during preparation I wash my hands, so I am not worried about wiping things down as soon as they come into the house.
We have been very careful, but occasionally have done something a bit risky eg had a plumber in the house, had a five minute car ride home when I had to leave my car at the garage, and I worry far more about those encounters than the shopping. Aerosols are the greatest danger.

Greyduster Mon 01-Feb-21 12:15:20

I have been wiping shopping over with either antiseptic wipes or a bleach solution for ages - I hate doing it; it’s a colossal waste of time and effort and my common sense tells me it’s probably over the top, but now I can’t bring myself to stop doing it - it’s become a ritual!

maddyone Mon 01-Feb-21 12:17:56

We wipe our food/packets/tins with a solution of Milton fluid. Safe for babies, must be safe for us. A few things we wash in hot soapy water. Detergent kills the virus as does Milton fluid.

maddyone Mon 01-Feb-21 12:18:58

We quarantine fresh fruits and vegetables in the garage for a couple of days or until needed.

BigBertha1 Mon 01-Feb-21 12:20:41

I've never done it just lots of handwashing and housecleaning. especially kitchen and bathrooms.

cornishpatsy Mon 01-Feb-21 12:24:25

I did it for a couple of weeks in the beginning but decided the viral load would be so small it wasn't worth doing.

If you wash your hands after unpacking I do not see a problem.

Norovirus has always been rife in the winter for years but we never wiped our shopping over, just washed our hands.

PernillaVanilla Mon 01-Feb-21 12:27:19

Just hand washing after unpacking our shopping here. There has never been any official advice that this is required, and I consider it unnecessary.

Tweedle24 Mon 01-Feb-21 13:02:34

After heeding government advice at the beginning of the epidemic, I started washing everything and then stopped, as I thought it was probably OTT. However, I have started again recently as I live in the southeast where the new variant is rampant.

rosie1959 Mon 01-Feb-21 13:08:06

Also living with my husband you both have to be on board with the idea. He comes in with shopping and sticks it away His post comes in to his office and he certainly doesn't quarantine it.
He would look on in horror if I started to wash food items with bleach or soapy water thinking I had gone totally batshit

EllanVannin Mon 01-Feb-21 13:08:14

I have a great pair of fine Marigolds that I don to remove as much packaging as is possible before putting things in fridge and freezer and cupboard. Tins are okay because they're not needed, just stored.
My daily newspaper sits on the floor in the hall for a good couple of hours as does post, before I read either. No hurry.

There's only me here so many things don't matter and I've been more or less isolated for a year as I was coming out of a " sick " New Year straight into lockdown and re-building my health.

Liz46 Mon 01-Feb-21 13:58:27

I had stopped wiping the shopping but then ten days after Christmas a huge spike happened where we live so I started again. I have a spray bottle and use diluted Zoflora to spray as much as possible and leave it to dry for a while.

Daisymae Mon 01-Feb-21 14:35:51

No, did it once then saw an interview with Dr Fauci who said that there's no need. I do wash my hand after touching anything that has come into the house and that's it.