‘Magic medicine’: Canned peaches fly off shelves across China amid belief that ‘king’ of fruits can ward off Covid-19 as restrictions relaxed

b03e5946-dac9-4ce7-a19c-df6363232b5f_d1c11dd4

A relatively unpopular sweetened and preserved fruit snack – canned yellow peach – is flying off the shelves across China as people prepare for a possible resurgence of Covid-19 amid the nationwide easing of pandemic restrictions.

Over the past few days there has been an on-and-offline buying spree of the sweet, fruity snack in the belief that its high-sugar, vitamin C-loaded content – combined with the fact that it can be stored safely for lengthy periods – make it a line of defence against the virus.