Farming is essential work, led across the country by people facing new challenges. From economic viability and labor shortages to technological advances and succession planning, today’s agricultural professionals are thinking about more than their grandparents were.
This new series dives into the top issues facing farmers in the next 10 years. Something on your mind? Fill out our contact form to let us know what you’d like to hear about.
Agriculture can be a dangerous business. Farming involves a variety of hazards from both the equipment and the environment involved. During harvest season, especially, heavy machinery is working in the fields and on the roads and serves as a threat to adults and children alike.
There is no comprehensive national data repository for ag-related injuries, and sources that collect this information are prone to suffer from the underreporting of injuries. Ag centers funded by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health engage in some data collection. Every year, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries releases a report on occupational fatalities across industries, with more comprehensive agriculture-specific reports coming more sporadically.
From what we do know, transportation-related incidents are the leading cause of agricultural fatalities, including tractors and ATVs, along with contact with machinery. According to the BLS, nearly half (47%) of the fatal injuries sustained by farmers and farm workers in 2020 came from transportation incidents.
Falls and animal-related injuries are also significant contributors to both fatal and non-fatal injuries. Confined spaces, which can carry the risk of suffocation and respiratory problems from airborne dust, also carry safety concerns.
“Farm safety requires proactive steps to minimize injuries and illnesses in the farm setting,” Scott Heiberger, Communications Manager at the National Farm Medicine Center, said. “This can include the '3 Es' - Engineering, Education, and Enforcement.”
Engineering involves modifying the equipment or environment to make it safer, such as using machinery guards, tractor rollbars, and improved ventilation systems. Education includes training both workers and family members on safety procedures and how to identify hazards. Enforcement means setting clear safety policies and making sure those policies are followed by people on your farm. Enforcement also includes respecting safety laws and fines for breaking those laws.
Being more safety-conscious on the farm can feel limiting, but it is important to minimize the risk of injury to an employee or loved one, whether or not they’re on the farm to work.
Before embarking on a task or entering the agricultural environment, remember to stop, think and act.
STOP: What could go wrong? How bad could it be? Has anything changed?
THINK: Do I clearly understand the task? Am I physically and mentally ready? Do I have the right tools?
ACT: Reduce risks, make it safe, use the right tools, and follow proper procedures!
It’s difficult not to look back fondly on childhood memories with dad or grandpa on the combine, but experts recommend these memories not be recreated in today’s agricultural landscape.
“There are many benefits to growing up on farms and ranches,” Heiberger said. “We also know that most injuries to children on farms occur to kids under 10 years old who are not working, but merely present in the worksite. Every year we hear about children who are run over by family members. We have a saying: ‘It’s easier to bury a tradition than a child.’”
Heiberger and other experts believe that in addition to acting with safety in mind, injuries and fatalities can be reduced by changing how we talk about farm safety incidents.
“Over half of all news reports about ag injuries included in our recent study used 'accident' or a related term,” Heiberger said. “This points to a culture of agricultural injuries being naturalized as accidental ‘facts of life.’ We want to help change that attitude, and instead look at these events as ‘preventable.’ But if we keep shrugging and saying it’s an accident, that attitude will get in the way of addressing the problems that lead to the injuries.
“A similar terminology shift occurred decades ago with the reporting of car crashes when the media stopped calling these events ‘accidents’ and started calling them ‘car crashes,” he said.
In the recent study, researchers found 47% of news reports described adults’ injuries and fatalities as ‘incidents’ rather than accidents, compared to just 34% of reports involving children’s injuries and fatalities. They argue the terminology change will aid in harm reduction for both groups.
Visit the Cultivate Safety website for access to ag safety information and resources. The Telling the Story Project also weaves incident prevention messages into first-person accounts of ag injury events.
The National Farm Medicine Center has put together Agricultural Youth Work Guidelines, which can be found here. For more information about their work, visit https://www.marshfieldresearch.org/nfmc.
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