A positive nucleic acid test on food does not mean it is infectious, and the possibility of novel coronavirus infection through the digestive tract is very small, the China National Center for Food Safety Risk Assessment (CFSA) said on Sunday.

There have been no known cases of consumers being infected with novel coronavirus through procured or processed foods, Li Ning, deputy director of the CFSA, said, noting that the positivity rate of nucleic acid tests on food is relatively low. Furthermore, a positive result only implies that the food once came into contact with the novel coronavirus.