With six lives lost within the Northern Ireland farming community so far this year and a further 100 accidents per month on farms, farming families have been called to ‘Stop and Think’ about farm safety.
Recent wet weather, time and financial pressures at this time of year could increase the risk of a near miss becoming an injury or a fatality on a farm this autumn, a campaign looking at farm safety has stated.
The causes of injuries and fatalities on farm have largely remained the same over the years.
As many as 100 accidents happen per month on Northern Irish farms which require medical treatment, the Farm Safety Partnership has said.
It has led the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE) to urge the farming community to continue to raise awareness, make improvements and adopt safer practices.
"Everyone involved in the farm business should be mindful of the risks and how to keep themselves and others safe. The farm family can include multiple generations and the impact of a farm accident should never be underestimated," CAFRE said in a statement.
Farm Family Key Skills
Farm Family Key Skills (FFKS) is a scheme being managed by CAFRE, which espouses a health and safety theme.
Farm Family Key Skills addresses the need for farmers, farm family members and farm employees to take a fresh look at health and safety on the farm.
The short workshops raise awareness of the need for families to regularly walk around their farm looking for potential risks and making improvements and places a greater emphasis on learning from the near misses.
The training also highlights the need to spread the message of farm safety to farm employees, visitors to the farm and more vulnerable members of the farm family such as children and older people.
The training covers the four main dangers associated with working on a farm, Slurry, Animals, Falls and Equipment.
