Multiple major meat packing plants have had their workers test positive for the virus. They number in the thousands.

We had discussion before of how freezing a virus would not necessarily kill it and it could actually preserve it (is that correct?)....Given that, could these infected meat plant workers be someone how spreading the virus into their packaged meats that are then frozen?

Not familiar with the meat packaging process and whether this is reasonable or not. But, it was just a thought.

Obviously, would have to still cook the meat with heat later, but in the thawing out process, could maybe the virus get unleashed? If this sounds stupid, I apologize in advance.

It is not stupid and at the same time there are no real answers. My bet would be that the virus could be in packaged meats so frankly, this is not the time I would choose to eat steak tartare, even though I have not heard that the virus could infect through the gastro-intestinal system.

There have been some indications that inhalation of small quantities of the virus may not make you sick while larger quantities will. It may be that this is why some folks 'test positive' but don't get sick. I don't know and I don't know that anybody knows for sure. Applied to a package of raw meat, don't stick your nose in it and wash your hands after handling it. The chances of a home-use size package having enough virus to make you sick I suspect is very small.

I frankly am more concerned about fresh produce because farm workers, especially harvesters, have little access to healthcare, need to work even when they are sick to care for their families and are not tracked well by the systems because as soon as the crop is harvested they are piled onto old buses and moved on to the next crop to be harvested. There are harvesting groups where 100% of the field workers are positive for COVID. Wash your produce carefully, peel it after washing where possible and cook it. Unfortunately this year we are having no strawberries except those I cook into sauce or a jam.. We are doing lots of cooked peppers, onions, celery, asparagus, broccoli, carrots, tomatoes and squashes. There is no cole slaw on the menu, though corned beef and cabbage is a favorite. There will be time next year, I hope, for grapes and cherries that aren't cooked.

@Flash wrote:

There have been some indications that inhalation of small quantities of the virus may not make you sick while larger quantities will. It may be that this is why some folks 'test positive' but don't get sick. I don't know and I don't know that anybody knows for sure. Applied to a package of raw meat, don't stick your nose in it and wash your hands after handling it. The chances of a home-use size package having enough virus to make you sick I suspect is very small.

Yes, the theory you're thinking of is referred to as "viral load." I posted on this before. You're right that there is not yet consensus on it, although it does make some logical sense. The idea is that people who inhale large quantities of the COVID virus may be more susceptible to getting very sick than those who only get a particle or two. This could explain why seemingly healthy medical workers die from it. A 40-year old doctor, who is treating COVID patients ALL DAY AND NIGHT, may pick up a heavy viral load over time.

Whereas, a person walking by someone who happens to breathe COVID-19 into his or her nostrils with just a few particles may have less severe consequences. One theory is that it's the time your body has to react to the intruder. A heavy viral load can overwhelm your body's immune system faster vs. a few particles that have to still replicate more to do more damage. Not sure if it's valid or not, but viral load does seem to be something tossed around a bit from my reading.

IF it is true, I have even more sympathy for medical workers. And I do think people should wear masks to protect them. . .if you get sick, you're going to have to be treated by these workers. They sit there and expose themselves to the virus all day long and viral load could be much higher for them than your average person on the street. So, when people say it's my freedom to not wear a mask, I hope they think of people like medical workers.

re: meat handling

Eeeesh, this does make me wonder if I should take extra precautions now. I'll have to have a talk with family members of this. It really is weird because of the freezing dilemma.

I am definitely less worried about meat than produce. Even if I break down a large package of meat into meal size portions for freezing I always treat it with respect as something that could be contaminated, such as chicken with salmonella. The knife, hands and surface are sanitized before and once the project is done. There is no reason why the virus should become airborne if it has adhered to the meat because I am not waving it around. And when meat is thawed, it is done on a plate in the microwave where once again virus is unlikely to go airborne. The plate then gets properly sanitized because some moisture from the frozen to thawed but not yet cooked meat is likely to be on it. Meat is then cooked and if a steak is still pink in the middle I don't worry about it because it did not have a cut surface that was not adequately cooked.

At this point I am not going to worry about what other people are or are not doing. As far as I am concerned, we are on our own to keep ourselves healthy. Sad situation, but it is what it is. If I can't keep 6-8' away from other people, I won't be there. I will wear my mask and gloves when I shop, whether I am the only person in the store so attired or not. Those things that don't need refrigeration will stay in the garage for a while to decontaminate themselves. Kitchen sponges and dishrags get boiled after dinner cleanup so we start each day sanitized.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/01/2020 03:13AM by Flash.

@shoptastic wrote:

The idea is that people who inhale large quantities of the COVID virus may be more susceptible to getting very sick than those who only get a particle or two. This could explain why seemingly healthy medical workers die from it. A 40-year old doctor, who is treating COVID patients ALL DAY AND NIGHT, may pick up a heavy viral load over time.

Whereas, a person walking by someone who happens to breathe COVID-19 into his or her nostrils with just a few particles may have less severe consequences. One theory is that it's the time your body has to react to the intruder. A heavy viral load can overwhelm your body's immune system faster vs. a few particles that have to still replicate more to do more damage.

To clarify a bit, if you have two people with identical health, where one gets a heavy load and the other gets just a few particles. ...Both might have their bodies recognize the intruder and start to fight it off. But the person who has the heavier viral load has the virus more quickly attacking him/her. Before neutralizing antibodies develop, the virus could have damaged that person severely already. Whereas, the person with just a particle or two may not have their immune system and body overhwhelmed initially and so quickly. The virus still has to replicate more to do more damage and that takes time. So, time is a factor. You may have more time for the body to mount a response if you inhale fewer particles. That's one reasoning/theory behind viral load, at least.

At this point too much is theoretical and very little is hard fact. Some hypotheses are better than others. Maybe there is a difference between a light load or a heavy load. There certainly are some folks more vulnerable to diseases than others. We know that the testing at best is not conclusive, whether if it is for the virus, scraps of the virus or antibodies. Time for common sense.

I don't think I am rationalizing when I figure I am unlikely to inhale moist droplets coming from raw meat. I'm probably more likely to inhale moist droplets when scrubbing vegetables. Overall I would suspect the probability from either is close to nil, but if I were concerned about it I would put on my mask.

@Flash wrote:

Time for common sense.

THERE'S a thought. I'd vote for you for President.

So you know a way to thaw chicken in the microwave without it turning to rubber?

By the way, you have wrecked my whole day, but thanks. I had not given any thought to produce contamination.

@Flash wrote:

And when meat is thawed, it is done on a plate in the microwave where once again virus is unlikely to go airborne.

My microwave has a 'defrost' cycle where I can choose 'chicken'. I start the defrost an hour or more before cooking is needed and give it just a quick cycle to get the defrost started. If I am doing a boneless, skinless chicken breast, that is going to be a timing that is for about half the weight of the breast. I then just leave the breast in its saran wrap (I individually wrap them in saran and throw in a freezer zip bag to freeze) until it is time to start cooking. Even if there are still ice crystals in the thickest parts, it will finish thawing quickly while I am seasoning or cutting up for the meal.

The issue, especially with chicken white meat, is that if it microwave cooks it will get grey, rubbery and hard. Half thawed it is easier to cut because it isn't that slippery, squishy little devil trying to get away from you on the cutting board. The breasts these days are so massive that they need to be cut to half thickness or less to serve a reasonable portion and I prefer make those cuts before cooking rather than after.

Yikes:

[www.bloomberg.com]

China says imported frozen chicken tested positive for COVID-19.