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Comment by enitihas | Hacker News Reader

Is decontamination really necessary? Can't you just ensure that you wash your hands after handling any delivered goods. For example, after receiving a delivery of something, you wash your hands after opening it. After receiving a food delivery, you heat the food and again wash hands before eating. Is this not sufficient?

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This has been on my mind periodically today because I ordered takeout for lunch for the first time in a couple weeks. Aside from not all takeout foods requiring to be heated thanks to wider options from services like Favor and Uber Eats (deli sandwiches, sushi, salads, etc...), quite often it's food eaten with your hands out of disposable containers/packaging handled by someone else, rather than utensils preventing additional touching of the packaging it came in.

How can one decontaminate ordered salad?

You can't, that's the point. Take all the precautions you want, but it's just impossible for some things (sushi also included). It's not like you can wash bread either.

Exactly. I started baking my own bread and when in pass in front of a bakery I wonder how long it will take for people to realize it's not 100% safe.

When the shit started going down in mid-Feb I bought 8 loaves of my favorite bread and froze them. Wish I had spent more time shorting the market.

Bread can be toasted (slices) or crisped (loaf).

Salad not so much.

You don't get infected by eating it even if it's contaminated though. At least there is no evidence that you can get a respiratory infection by eating the virus.

That would be awesome to know, and would take a lot of stress off my mind.

There is a reason to wash hands and avoid touching visage with dirty hands. Isn’t it? Touching mouth with contaminated hands = eating the virus.

Even the article basically says no. First point: Your risk of getting infected by deliveries showing up at your door is very low.

Many delivered foods are eaten from the same containers they are delivered in, and many of those containers can't themselves be heated. (plastic doesn't get hot in the microwave and melts in an oven)

You could maybe transfer it to a metal container first?

Yes, that is correct. But if you eat from the same container, there is no way to decontaminate.

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