China’s cherry sales suffer ‘devastating blow’ after reports of coronavirus contamination scare consumers
- Positive coronavirus test in Jiangsu province threatens nationwide cherry sales during peak season ahead of Lunar New Year holiday, when cherries are given as gifts
- Origin of contaminated cherries not disclosed, but Chilean authorities have sprung into damage-control mode, splashing out US$1.5 million to tell Chinese that its crucial export is safe
Reports that some imported cherries tested positive for traces of the coronavirus last week swiftly sent shock waves across Chinese social media, scaring customers and hurting cherry sales during the peak season ahead of the Lunar New Year.
New information circulating online – that cherries have since tested negative for coronavirus contamination – appears to have done little to placate customers and quell the cherry crisis in China.
The Centre for Disease Control and Prevention in Liangxi district, Wuxi, in eastern China’s Jiangsu province, issued a circular on January 21 saying that tests on imported cherries in late December revealed coronavirus contamination. This set off alarm bells across the country just a few weeks before the holiday period when cherries are commonly given as gifts in China as a symbol of wealth and prosperity.
Cherry sales have been sent into a tailspin, and Chilean authorities have sprung into damage-control mode to protect one of the country’s vital exports, even though the origin of the contaminated cherries was not disclosed.
“It’s a devastating blow to the entire industry,” a wholesale agent in Guangzhou’s Jiangnan wholesale market said.