Experts Debunk COVID Origin Conspiracy Theories, Warn of Pandemic Preparedness Risks

According to a report published in late June 2025, the World Health Organization's Scientific Advisory Group for the Origins of Novel Pathogens (SAGO) has concluded that the COVID-19 pandemic most likely originated from a natural zoonotic spillover event, rather than a laboratory leak. This aligns with the findings of a 2020 study by a group of experts, which has since become a target of conspiracy theories and political attacks.

The SAGO report states that while the exact origins of the virus remain unknown, the evidence currently points to the virus jumping from animals to humans, likely at the Huanan live-animal market in Wuhan, China. Extensive research in the years since the pandemic began has strengthened this hypothesis, with studies showing environmental samples from the market containing genetic material from susceptible animals.

However, the public discourse around COVID-19's origins has increasingly been shaped by political agendas and conspiracy theories, some of which have directly targeted the work of the 2020 researchers. These false narratives claim the experts were pressured to promote a "preferred" natural origin hypothesis while silencing the possibility of a lab leak. The researchers strongly deny these allegations, stating that the extensive body of evidence simply does not support the lab leak theory.

Experts warn that the amplification of COVID-19 origin conspiracy theories is undermining trust in science and public health institutions, which in turn is hindering pandemic preparedness efforts. Major funding cuts to key agencies like the CDC and NIH, as well as the US withdrawal from the WHO, are directly linked to this anti-science agenda. This leaves the world more vulnerable to future pandemics, which experts say are inevitable given the continued risks posed by the unregulated wildlife trade.