Canadian Press NewsAlert: Trudeau pledges $252M for COVID-19 aid to agriculture

OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is promising a $252-million aid package for Canada’s agriculture and food industries in the COVID-19 pandemic.

He says $77 million of that will go to measures to keep workers in food processing safe with protective equipment and by supporting physical distancing in workplaces.

Meat-packing plants, in particular, have seen large outbreaks of the virus that causes COVID-19.

The package includes money for beef and pork producers holding animals they can’t sell, a credit program for the dairy industry and a $50-million fund to buy food that spoils and send it to groups such as food banks.