The coronavirus outbreak has forced us to rethink almost all aspects of our lives, from the big things like how we do our jobs and teach our children, to the smaller things like how we do our grocery shopping.
Most supermarkets across the UAE have implemented strict safety measures to ensure all shoppers adhere to Covid-19 health and safety guidelines, from wearing a mask and gloves in store to maintaining at least a two-metre distance from other customers.
Most shoppers are choosing to follow extra precautions when they get their shopping home, too, taking care when handling goods and washing all fresh produce before consuming.
But what happens when you buy fresh items that don’t come pre-packaged, like bread from a bakery?
There has been a lot of information circulated detailing how long the coronavirus can live on surfaces like metal and plastic, but when it comes to food surfaces, there has been little research.
Despite that, last month, hundreds of social media users circulated a notice seemingly from the World Health Organisation advising to avoid bakery goods.
“Stop eating bakery items,” the notice read, alongside the logo of the WHO. “It is strictly advised to not eat bakery items as it is not washable and can get infected to the virus easily.”
However, the WHO in Sri Lanka was quick to dispel the notice as fake, sharing a post from its verified Twitter account to reassure people that the organisation had not advised people to avoid bakery goods, and instead pointed users to its website as a credible source of information.
While the official WHO website does not go into specific detail about Covid-19 and bakery goods, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) goes into more detail about the transmission of the virus through food.
“We are not aware of any reports at this time of human illnesses that suggest Covid-19 can be transmitted by food or food packaging,” it said in a statement. “However, it is always important to follow good hygiene practices (i.e., wash hands and surfaces often, separate raw meat from other foods, cook to the right temperature, and refrigerate foods promptly) when handling or preparing foods.”
Despite that, many bakers around the world are taking extra precautions to ensure fresh bread products are handled as safely as possible, whether that is wearing disposable gloves and masks, or using tongs to bag up all products.
Martin D'Agostino, virology section manager at Campden BRI in the United Kingdom, told website bakeryinfo.co.uk that the virus was "relatively unstable" on the surface of food as it cannot, as far as researchers are aware, be contracted through ingestion. Instead, Covid-19, as a respiratory disease, is contracted through being inhaled, meaning food is unlikely to be the source of an infection.
Normal hygiene practises should be followed, he advises, such as washing hands thoroughly before and after handling any baked goods and before eating. It is also important to make sure any surfaces food comes into contact with are properly cleaned.
In the UAE, French Bakery Dubai is among the establishments to impose strict safety measures. As well as all staff being regularly screened and bakeries sanitised, staff have been trained in special Covid-19 safety measures.
A spokesperson for the outlet told The National that staff are ensuring the "frequent cleaning and disinfection of food, body and hand contact surfaces," and added that everyone is required to wear aprons, masks and gloves whenever they are working.
“Riders should not touch the handle of the food bag, and should only hold the food bags from the bottom of the bag when picking it up and again do the same when handing it to customers,” the spokesperson added. “All items are to be handled from bottom of the bag and not top handle of the bag, [this is] very important.”
Yahya Al Ghassani's bio
Date of birth: April 18, 1998
Playing position: Winger
Clubs: 2015-2017 – Al Ahli Dubai; March-June 2018 – Paris FC; August – Al Wahda
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Poacher
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The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Lamsa
Founder: Badr Ward
Launched: 2014
Employees: 60
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: EdTech
Funding to date: $15 million
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
THE SPECS
Engine: Four-cylinder 2.5-litre
Transmission: Seven-speed auto
Power: 165hp
Torque: 241Nm
Price: Dh99,900 to Dh134,000
On sale: now
Company profile
Name: Oulo.com
Founder: Kamal Nazha
Based: Dubai
Founded: 2020
Number of employees: 5
Sector: Technology
Funding: $450,000
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
ETFs explained
Exhchange traded funds are bought and sold like shares, but operate as index-tracking funds, passively following their chosen indices, such as the S&P 500, FTSE 100 and the FTSE All World, plus a vast range of smaller exchanges and commodities, such as gold, silver, copper sugar, coffee and oil.
ETFs have zero upfront fees and annual charges as low as 0.07 per cent a year, which means you get to keep more of your returns, as actively managed funds can charge as much as 1.5 per cent a year.
There are thousands to choose from, with the five biggest providers BlackRock’s iShares range, Vanguard, State Street Global Advisors SPDR ETFs, Deutsche Bank AWM X-trackers and Invesco PowerShares.
Company%20Profile
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Company%20Profile
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
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Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
SRI LANKA SQUAD
Upul Tharanga (captain), Dinesh Chandimal, Niroshan Dickwella
Lahiru Thirimanne, Kusal Mendis, Milinda Siriwardana
Chamara Kapugedara, Thisara Perera, Seekuge Prasanna
Nuwan Pradeep, Suranga Lakmal, Dushmantha Chameera
Vishwa Fernando, Akila Dananjaya, Jeffrey Vandersay
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Winners
Best Men's Player of the Year: Kylian Mbappe (PSG)
Maradona Award for Best Goal Scorer of the Year: Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
TikTok Fans’ Player of the Year: Robert Lewandowski
Top Goal Scorer of All Time: Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
Best Women's Player of the Year: Alexia Putellas (Barcelona)
Best Men's Club of the Year: Chelsea
Best Women's Club of the Year: Barcelona
Best Defender of the Year: Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus/Italy)
Best Goalkeeper of the Year: Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG/Italy)
Best Coach of the Year: Roberto Mancini (Italy)
Best National Team of the Year: Italy
Best Agent of the Year: Federico Pastorello
Best Sporting Director of the Year: Txiki Begiristain (Manchester City)
Player Career Award: Ronaldinho
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
