5,500 HEPA filters will help protect workers from COVID-19
Ontario is further protecting agri-food workers against COVID-19 by distributing up to 5,500 free HEPA filters to improve ventilation in agri-food congregate living settings.
“Since the beginning of the pandemic, our government has provided unprecedented levels of support to protect our provincial agri-food supply chain, and it is critical that we continue doing everything we can to keep agri-food workers safe,” said Lisa Thompson, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. “These HEPA filters will provide farmers with another tool to use to help in the fight against COVID-19, all while ensuring agri-food workers have a safe environment to work and live in, and people can continue to access the safe and healthy food grown and made in Ontario.”
HEPA filter units, in conjunction with other prevention and control strategies, can help control and remove harmful airborne pathogens and improve air quality. This will add an additional layer of protection to keep agri-food workers safe and reduce the risk of COVID-19 outbreaks on farms and in workplaces across the food supply chain, according to the government.
Farms and agri-food businesses that employ and provide housing to international agri-food workers are eligible for one HEPA filter unit per employer-provided congregate living setting. These units will be deployed in partnership with the Ministry of Government and Consumer Services at no cost to employers through the voluntary Registry of Employers International Agri-food Workers.
During the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, some 25 per cent of the total death count because of the virus were attributed to immigrants, according to a previous report. Also, migrant farmworkers who come to Ontario from other countries are at higher risk of contracting COVID-19 and other diseases. This is due to their communal living and working conditions, according to a previous report.
In September 2021, for the first time in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, a southern Ontario farm was prosecuted for alleged workplace safety violations leading to 199 migrant workers contracting the coronavirus, and one dying of the disease.
The latest program from Ontario received positive feedback from stakeholders.
“We appreciate the Ontario government’s commitment to delivering another tool that will assist greenhouses in keeping their workers safe and mitigating COVID-19 risks,” said George Gilvesy, chair of the Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers. “Access to these HEPA air filters will help to support local food production and ensure that fresh vegetables are on grocery store shelves and our tables.”
“Ontario’s fruit and vegetable growers have worked hard during the pandemic, adapting to evolving public health requirements to keep our critical agri-food workforce safe,” said Bill George, chair of the Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers’ Association. “The ongoing support of the Ontario government to provide tools like HEPA air filters to help in our efforts to feed Ontarians cannot be overstated.”
Ontario has previously distributed personal protective equipment and rapid antigen tests (RATs) and provided $36 million through the Enhanced Agri-Food Workplace Protection Program for agri-food workers. Supports through the program are available until Feb. 15, 2022 to help agri-businesses guard against the spread of COVID-19 in agri-food workplaces and ensure worker/employee health and safety.
In November 2021, the federal and Ontario governments announced they are jointly investing more than $7 million through the Canadian Agricultural Partnership to launch two new multi-year mental health initiatives that are specialized to protect the mental health of farmers and their families.
