Food Safety and Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Basics
Coronaviruses are generally thought to be spread from person-to-person through respiratory droplets. Currently there is no evidence to support transmission of COVID-19 associated with food. Before preparing or eating food, it is important to always wash your hands with soap and water for 20 seconds for general food safety. Throughout the day, wash your hands after blowing your nose, coughing or sneezing, or going to the bathroom.
It may be possible that a person can get COVID-19 by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching their own mouth, nose, or possibly their eyes, but this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads.
In general, because of poor survivability of these coronaviruses on surfaces, there is likely very low risk of spread from food products or packaging that are shipped over a period of days or weeks at ambient, refrigerated, or frozen temperatures.
You should always handle and prepare food safely, including keeping raw meat separate from other foods, refrigerating perishable foods, and cooking meat to the right temperature to kill harmful germs. See CDC’s Food Safety site for more information.
For more information on COVID-19, visit CDC’s FAQ page or FDA's COVID-19 website.
FAQ FOR CUSTOMERS / CONSUMERS
Q: Can I get sick with COVID-19 from touching food, the food packaging, or food contact surfaces, if the coronavirus was present on it?
A: The U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) states that there is currently no evidence of food or food packaging being associated with transmission of COVID-19. It may be possible that a person can get COVID-19 by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching their mouth, nose, or possibly their eyes, but this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads. CDC notes that in general, because of poor survivability of these coronaviruses on surfaces, there is likely very low risk of spread from food products or packaging that are shipped over a period of days or weeks at ambient, refrigerated, or frozen temperatures. It is more likely that a person will be exposed by person-to-person transmission involving close contact with someone who is ill or shedding the virus.
Like other viruses, it is possible that the virus that causes COVID-19 can survive on surfaces or objects. For that reason, it is critical to follow the 4 key steps of food safety—clean, separate, cook, and chill.
In regard to food safety and hygiene by the food system work force, New York’s standards for worker health and hygiene are supported by labor laws that are specific about paid sick leave for people possibly affected by COVID-19 and unable to work. Food manufacturers have been required by longstanding federal and state laws and regulations to prevent anyone who is sick or has a communicable disease from handling, processing or preparing food for human consumption. Thus, industries handling food and agricultural commodities are well practiced at this important and general principle of food safety and hygiene.
Consumers can follow CDC guidelines on how to protect yourself, especially the advice on frequent hand washing with soap and water for at least 20 seconds; and frequent cleaning and disinfecting of surfaces.
If you are concerned about contamination of food and food packaging you have purchased from the grocery store, wash your hands after handling food and food packages when you return from the grocery store and after removing packaging from food. In addition, it’s always critical to follow the 4 key steps of food safety—clean, separate, cook, and chill – to prevent foodborne illness. FDA also has advice about safely selecting and serving raw produce.
Q: Are food products produced in the United States or other countries affected by COVID-19 a risk for the spread of COVID-19?
A: There is no evidence to suggest that food produced in the United States or imported from countries affected by COVID-19 can transmit COVID-19.
FAQ FOR EMPLOYERS / EMPLOYEES
Q: Should food facilities (grocery stores, manufacturing facilities, restaurants, etc.) perform any special cleaning or sanitation procedures for COVID-19?
A: CDC recommends routine cleaning of all frequently touched surfaces in the workplace, such as workstations, countertops, and doorknobs. Use the cleaning agents that are usually used in these areas and follow the directions on the label. CDC does not recommend any additional disinfection beyond routine cleaning at this time.
View the current list of products that meet EPA’s criteria for use against SARS-CoV-2, the cause of COVID-19.
Restaurants and retail food establishments are regulated at the state and local level. State, local, and tribal regulators use the Food Code published by the FDA to develop or update their own food safety rules. Generally, FDA-regulated food manufacturers are required to maintain clean facilities, including, as appropriate, clean and sanitized food contact surfaces, and to have food safety plans in place. Food safety plans include a hazards analysis and risk-based preventive controls and include procedures for maintaining clean and sanitized facilities and food contact surfaces. See: FSMA Final Rule for Preventive Controls for Human Food.
Q: Should employees, such as cashiers, baggers, and cleaning personnel in food retail settings wear face masks to prevent exposure to COVID-19?
A: CDC does not recommend that people who are well wear a facemask to protect themselves from respiratory diseases, including COVID-19. You should only wear a mask if a healthcare professional recommends it. A facemask should be used by people who have COVID-19 and are showing symptoms. This is to protect others from the risk of getting infected. The use of facemasks is also crucial for health workers and people who are taking care of someone with COVID-19 in close settings (at home or in a health care facility).
CDC recommends everyday preventive actions for everyone, including service industry workers and customers:
Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.
Stay home when you are sick.
Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom; before eating; and after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing.
If soap and water are not readily available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol. Always wash hands with soap and water if hands are visibly dirty.
Q: Do I need to recall food products produced in the facility during the time that the worker was potentially shedding virus while working?
A: We do not anticipate that food products would need to be recalled or be withdrawn from the market because of COVID-19, as there is currently no evidence to support the transmission of COVID-19 associated with food or food packaging.
Additionally, facilities are required to control any risks that might be associated with workers who are ill regardless of the type of virus or bacteria. For example, facilities are required to maintain clean and sanitized facilities and food contact surfaces.
Q: A worker in my food processing facility/farm has tested positive for COVID-19. What steps do I need to take to ensure that the foods I produce are safe?
A: Coronaviruses are generally thought to be spread from person-to-person through respiratory droplets. Currently, there is no evidence to support transmission of COVID-19 by food. Unlike foodborne gastrointestinal (GI) viruses like norovirus and hepatitis A that often make people ill through contaminated food, SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19, is a virus that causes respiratory illness. Foodborne exposure to this virus is not known to be a route of transmission.
If an employee is confirmed to have COVID-19, employers should inform fellow employees of their possible exposure to COVID-19 in the workplace but maintain confidentiality. Sick employees should follow the CDC’s What to do if you are sick with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
While the primary responsibility in this instance is to take appropriate actions to protect other workers and people who might have come in contact with the ill employee, facilities should re-double their cleaning and sanitation efforts to control any risks that might be associated with workers who are ill regardless of the type of virus or bacteria. For example, facilities are required to maintain clean and sanitized facilities and food contact surfaces.
Q: If a worker in my food processing facility has tested positive for COVID-19, should I test the environment for the SARS-CoV-2 virus?
A: Currently there is no evidence of food or food packaging being associated with transmission of COVID-19. Therefore, we do not believe there is a need to conduct environmental testing in food settings for the virus that causes COVID 19 for the purpose of food safety. Cleaning and sanitizing the surfaces is a better use of resources than testing to see if the virus is present.
Facilities are required to use personnel practices that protect against contamination of food, food contact surfaces and packaging and to maintain clean and sanitized facilities and food contact surfaces. Although it is possible that the infected worker may have touched surfaces in your facility, FDA-regulated food manufacturers are required to follow Current Good Manufacturing Practices (CGMPs). Maintaining CGMPs in the facility should minimize the potential for surface contamination and eliminate contamination when it occurs. With the detection of the coronavirus in asymptomatic people and studies showing survival of coronavirus on surfaces for short periods of time, as an extra precaution, food facilities may want to consider a more frequent cleaning and sanitation schedule for high human contact surfaces.
Q: How do I maintain social distancing in my food production/processing facility and food retail establishment where employees typically work within close distances?
A: To prevent spread of COVID-19, CDC is recommending individuals employ social distancing or maintaining approximately 6 feet from others, when possible. In food production/processing facilities and retail food establishments, an evaluation should be made to identify and implement operational changes that increase employee separation. However, social distancing to the full 6 feet will not be possible in some food facilities.
Workers in the food and agriculture sector fill critical and essential roles within communities. Promoting the ability of our workers within the food and agriculture industry to continue to work during periods of community restrictions, social distances, and closure orders, among others, is crucial to community continuity and community resilience. This was reinforced by DHS in its Guidance on the Essential Critical Infrastructure Workforce: Ensuring Community and National Resilience in COVID-19.
The risk of an employee transmitting COVID-19 to another is dependent on distance between employees, the duration of the exposure, and the effectiveness of employee hygiene practices and sanitation. When it’s impractical for employees in these settings to maintain social distancing, effective hygiene practices should be maintained to reduce the chance of spreading the virus.
FAQ: EMPLOYEE RIGHTS DURING THE PANDEMIC
OBLIGATION TO GO INTO WORK (NY STATE)
Q: What are my rights to stay home during the pandemic?
A: Governor Cuomo has instructed non-essential employees not to go into work. The Governor ordered on March 20, 2020, that businesses are required to keep 100% of their employees at home after Sunday, March 22, 2020.
Certain businesses or entities providing essential services, including those in the healthcare, infrastructure, manufacturing, retail, essential public services, news media, finance, charities, construction, defense, sanitation, and technology vending sectors, are exempt from the Executive Order’s in-person work restrictions. To find the full list of essential businesses and services, please visit the Empire State Development essential business guidance page.
Under the Governor’s order, however, entities providing essential service continue to be under obligation to utilize, to the maximum extent possible, any telecommuting or work from home procedures. For entities that provide both essential and non-essential services, only those business operations that are necessary to support the essential services are exempt.
You can submit a complaint with the Attorney General’s Office if you believe your employer is doing any of the following:
Requiring employees to come to work even if the employer is not an essential business;
Requiring employees to come to work even if they are performing business operations that are not necessary to support essential services; or
Not permitting employees to telecommute or work from home whose job responsibilities would permit them to do so.
Please contact the Attorney General’s Office, preferably by e-mail at Labor.Bureau@ag.ny.gov, or by phone at (212) 416-8700.
EMERGENCY PAID SICK AND FAMILY LEAVE
New federal and state emergency sick and family leave laws offer specific protections for people diagnosed with, have symptoms of, or quarantined for COVID-19, people caring for those with COVID-19, or people caring for children whose schools have closed due to COVID-19.
The federal Families First Coronavirus Response Act takes effect on April 2, 2020, and the state law is currently in effect.
Q: Am I entitled to any paid medical leave if I have COVID-19 or have symptoms of COVID-19?
A: Employees who are diagnosed with or displaying symptoms of COVID-19 are entitled to 80 hours of paid sick leave at full pay, with a maximum of $5,110 total, if they are working for employers of 499 employees or less, with limited exceptions, under federal law.
Q: Am I entitled to any paid medical leave if I am under a mandatory or precautionary quarantine order?
A: Both federal and state law provide protections for those under quarantine or isolation. The state paid leave provisions only apply if they are more protective than the federal leave provisions. The state law protections do not apply to those who are not sick and able to work remotely but under quarantine or self-isolation at home. Whether state or federal protections govern depends on employer size. This means that in general:
For employers with 100 or more employees
Employees are entitled to 14 days of paid sick leave at full pay under state law.
For employers with between 50 and 99 employees
Employees are entitled to 80 hours of paid sick leave at full pay, with a maximum of $5,110 total, under federal law.
For employers with between 11 and 49 employees or with 10 or fewer employees with net income over $1 million
Under federal law, employers with fewer than 50 employees are obligated to provide up to 80 hours of paid sick leave at full pay, with a maximum of $ 5,110 total, with limited exceptions.
If the employer is not able to provide leave under federal law, employees are still entitled to take sick leave for the duration of their quarantine, with at least five days of sick leave at full pay, under state law. Employees may apply for state paid family leave and temporary disability benefits to cover the rest of the quarantine period. For state family leave benefits, the maximum weekly allowance is $840.70. For emergency temporary disability benefits, the maximum weekly allowance is $2,043.92.
For more information on state paid family leave, please call the NYS Paid Family Leave Helpline at (844) 337-6303 or visit the NYS Paid Family Leave resource page.
For employers with 10 or fewer employees with net income under $1 million
Under federal law, employers with fewer than 50 employees are obligated to provide up to 80 hours of paid sick leave at full pay, with a maximum of $ 5,110 total, with limited exceptions.
If the employer is not able to provide leave under federal law, employees are still entitled to take unpaid sick leave for the duration of their quarantine under state law. Employees may apply for state paid family leave and temporary disability benefits to cover the quarantine period. For state family leave benefits, the maximum weekly allowance is $840.70. For emergency temporary disability benefits, the maximum weekly allowance is $2,043.92.
For more information on state paid family leave, please call the NYS Paid Family Leave Helpline at (844) 337-6303 or visit the NYS Paid Family Leave resource page.
Q: Am I entitled to any paid leave if someone in my family has COVID-19 or has been quarantined?
A: Employees are entitled to up to 80 hours of emergency paid family leave, with a maximum of $200 per day and $2,000 in the aggregate, with limited exceptions, under federal law. Employees are also entitled to use state paid family leave to care for sick family members or for children under mandatory quarantine. For state family leave benefits, employees will be compensated at 60% of their average weekly earnings for 10 weeks with a maximum weekly allowance of $840.70 per week. For more information on state paid family leave, please call the NYS Paid Family Leave Helpline at (844) 337-6303 or visit the NYS Paid Family Leave resource page.
Q: Am I entitled to any paid leave if my children’s school is closed due to COVID-19?
A: Employees are entitled to use federal emergency sick leave and emergency family medical leave to care for children whose schools have closed due to COVID-19 outbreaks if they work for employers with between 50 and 499 employees. Employers with fewer than 50 employees may be exempt from providing family leave if it jeopardizes their business viability. For federal paid sick leave benefits, the maximum is $200 per day and $2,000 in the aggregate. For federal family leave benefits, employees will be compensated at a maximum of $2,000 total for the first two weeks and at 67% of their regular rate for the following ten weeks, with a maximum of $10,000 total.
Q: Am I entitled to any emergency paid leave for COVID-19 if I am an independent contractor?
A: Under federal law, individuals who are self-employed are entitled to receive tax credits for the equivalent of 10 days of paid sick leave at the lesser of 100% of their average daily rate or $511 per day. Individuals are also entitled to receive tax credits for the equivalent of 10 days of paid sick leave at the lesser of 67% of their average daily rate or $200 to care for family members or to care for children whose schools have been closed due to COVID-19. Individuals may receive an additional 50 days of paid family leave at the lesser of 67% of their average daily rate or $200 per day to care for children whose schools have closed due to COVID-19.