ABSTRACT
COVID-infected people handling fruits and vegetables may spread the virus to healthy people on contact. Here we examined if SARS-CoV-2 was detectable on the fruits, vegetables, hand gloves and packaging materials collected from the open markets and pack houses in India. During the study (2021-22), swabs from 748 samples representing the majorly traded items were tested using RT-LAMP assay. The sensitivity and specificity of the kit were found to be equivalent to the RT-PCR assay. All test samples were found negative for SARS-CoV-2. Thus, it can be concluded that the virus is unlikely to spread to foods and packaging materials through human contact. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Current Science (00113891) is the property of Indian Academy of Sciences and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)