The Government of Ontario is providing continued support to help agri-businesses guard against the spread of COVID-19 in agri-food workplaces so that worker/employee health and safety is protected, and the sector is supported.
Program applications are accepted for eligible items ordered on or after January 1, 2021 and received on or after March 13, 2021. Applications are received and assessed on a continuous basis, while funding is available or until November 30, 2021 at 11:59pm. Find the Guidelines here: http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/about/agrifoodprogram.htm
Funding is available through the following categories:
1. The Workplace COVID-19 Prevention category will support the adoption of prevention and mitigation measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19 among agri-food workers/employees.
2. The Responsive COVID-19 Outbreak Management category will reimburse eligible applicants who have been impacted by outbreaks of COVID-19 and faced with extraordinary costs related to employee wage supports and worker/employee isolation.
Eligible Businesses include:
· An established farm business that is a legal entity and produces agricultural commodities in Ontario under a valid Farm Business Registration Number (FBRN), or an allowable religious or cultural exemption.
· A business that is a legal entity located in Ontario that provides primary food processing for fruit and vegetable crops. Primary food processing involves cutting, cleaning, packaging, storage and refrigeration of raw plant foods to ensure that they are not spoiled before they reach the consumer.
· A business that is a legal entity located in Ontario and provides one of the following on-farm services where agriculture employees operate within close proximity of one another:
· chicken catchers
· corn detasselers
· hatcheries
· transporters of agricultural commodities
