Newspapers are safe to continue reading, with no evidence to date of COVID-19 being transmitted by touching paper and the vast majority of cases being contracted due to respiratory droplets being passed from person to person.

Leading newsprint provider UPM Communication Papers has assured readers that there is no specific risk associated with paper products, adding that there is only a ‘very low risk’ of contracting the coronavirus from products or packaging that have been shipped over a period of days.

The virus can be detected in aerosols for up to three hours after being sprayed, in copper for four hours, on cardboard for up to a day and on plastic and stainless steel for two to three days.

Newspapers are safe to continue reading with no evidence of paper transmitting COVID-19.

‘Transmission through smear infection with viruses picked up after touching any infected surface is a theoretical possibility only but there has been no evidence on reported cases to date,’ UPM’s Martin Ledwon said.

‘Considering the current scientific view on ways of infection and the possible role of surfaces carrying a certain quantity of virus we can conclude that we do not see a specific risk associated with paper products.

‘It is worth pointing out that all major health organisations focus their recommendations regarding an effective protection against coronavirus infections on keeping social distance and careful and frequent personal hygiene.’

Of course, people have traditionally eaten fish and chips out of newsprint.

Scientists have said the risk of catching the virus from a paper is ‘infinitesimal’, and the World Health Organisation has stressed it is safe to have them delivered.

Virologist George Lomonossoff said: ‘Newspapers are pretty sterile because of the way they are printed and the process they’ve been through. Traditionally, people have eaten fish and chips out of them for that very reason. The chances of [catching the virus] are infinitesimal.’

Mr Ledwon said that UPM would monitor the scientific research and reconsider its advice if new findings emerge.

Payments Breaks Deadline
Ireland's retail bank have set a deadline of June 30 for applications from personal and business customers for payments breaks on their loans and mortgages. The Banking and Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI), which represents...
EasyJet will consult with employees on plans to cut 30% of its workforce as it plots its return to service in a reduced capacity when international COVID-19 restrictions are eased. The budget airline said in...
Workers Worried Jobs COVID-19
Two thirds of Irish workers are fearful for their jobs and worried about their ability to find work in the future due to COVID-19, a survey has found. The survey, conducted among workers across...
Recession Economy
The Irish economy could be on the verge of the largest recession in its history as government restrictions to prevent the further spread of COVID-19 take their toll, the Economic and Social Research Institute...
Travel Ireland
Just 16,100 people arrived in Ireland by air or sea in April after the government enacted lockdown restrictions, figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show. The total represents a reduction of 99.1% from the...