New worker health and safety costs are rising fast.Ottawa—A $77.5 million federal Emergency Processing Fund will help but falls short of covering the extra costs that food manufacturers face in meeting new federal health protection requirements for their employees, processor groups say.Michael Graydon, CEO of Food & Consumer Products of Canada (FCPC), said his organization “remains concerned that the funding amount is not nearly enough to ensure our member companies can continue to operate competitively in the current COVID climate.“The details of the funding are a positive step in helping our member companies continue to operate while keeping employees and facilities safe. Unfortunately, it is still not enough,” he said.“Mandatory compliance with new health and safety measures has caused costs to rise considerably. We're concerned that this funding simply won't cover all COVID-related costs already incurred by our members, let alone afford them the ability to secure the disposable and permanent PPE required for facilities to weather a potential second wave.”Kathleen Sullivan, CEO of Food and Beverage Canada, said the Fund “will help some food and beverage manufacturers address costs of COVID-19 but it will not go far enough to recognize the impact of this pandemic on one of Canada's most vital sectors.“Since the COVID-19 outbreak began food and beverage manufacturers been under incredible pressure from governments to continue operating while protecting their workers from a global pandemic. This has resulted in additional costs we estimate to exceed $800 million,” she said.Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau said the Fund will helper food companies implement changes required by COVID-19 to ensure the health and safety of workers. It can assist with plant retrofits or adjustments to existing operations to accommodate changes to processes and production.It can also enable companies to improve, automate, and modernize facilities needed to increase Canada's food supply capacity, she said. It can be applied to changes since March 15 and must be completed by September 30.Graydon said, “We are pleased to see both permanent PPE and training for workers on additional health security measures are covered under the activities eligible for funding; however as our members respond to the challenges presented by COVID-19, they continue to face immediate and unprecedented costs and uncertainties that jeopardize our industry's long-term viability.“Moreover, the growing uncertainty in securing access to PPE has revealed deep-rooted vulnerabilities in the supply chain. These hurdles ultimately undermine the competitiveness of our industry,” he said.“We will work with government to expand the criteria and secure additional funding for these mounting pandemic-related costs, to ensure that our member facilities can keep their doors open and continue to feed Canadians.”Alex Binkley is a freelance journalist and writes for domestic and international publications about agriculture, food and transportation issues. He's also the author of two science fiction novels with more in the works.