The American Frozen Food Institute, National Meat Association, International Dairy Foods Association and United Fresh Produce Association would like to cause $77.7 bln in food borne illnesses v having safer processing standards....

An Obama administration plan to raise $220 million for food-safety programs through fees on processing plants, warehouses and other facilities. 

The fees are minimal compared with the cost of foodborne illness, which the act seeks to reduce, Doug Karas, a spokesman for the FDA, said in an e-mail. Such illnesses cost $77.7 billion a year, according to a 2012 study cited in the agency’s proposal. That includes medical costs, time off work and the cost of premature death. 

 The Republican Congress rejected including a similar proposal in the Food and Drug Administration’s budget request last year and also ruled out the idea when debating a food-safety law that President Barack Obama signed last year.