Coronavirus: should we be sanitising our shopping?

By Hayley Bennett and Catherine Smith2020-04-27T10:25:00

An image showing an employee wearing a protective face mask disinfecting shopping trolleys for customers arriving to shop at a supermarket

Source: © Helmut Fohringer/APA/AFP/Getty Images

Chemists are busily working out how long Covid-19 remains viable on various surfaces – here’s what we know so far

The media is often awash with vaguely scientific scare stories, and the coronavirus pandemic has unleashed a torrent of such coverage. This article investigates the story that Covid-19 can be spread by our shopping, investigating how scientists assess the viability of viruses on various surfaces and examining the evidence for how long Sars-CoV-2 remains viable. Alongside the article are activities for teachers to use with students in the 14–16 and 16–18 age groups.

Thanks for using Education in Chemistry. You can view one Education in Chemistry article per month as a visitor.

A photograph of a teacher standing in a white lab coat, speaking with a class of children in a laboratory, is superimposed on a colourful background. Text reads "Teach Chemistry means support for classroom and staff room".

Register for Teach Chemistry for free, unlimited access

Registration is open to all teachers and technicians at secondary schools, colleges and teacher training institutions in the UK and Ireland.

Get all this, plus much more:

unlimited access to resources, core practical videos and Education in Chemistry articles
teacher well-being toolkit, personal development resources and online assessments
applications for funding to support your lessons

Set up your Teach Chemistry account

Already a Teach Chemistry member? Sign in now.

Not eligible for Teach Chemistry? Sign up for a personal account instead, or you can also access all our resources with Royal Society of Chemistry membership.