National Farm Safety and Health Week is Sept. 16-22

Heading into harvest is a great time for reminders on farm safety and potential hazards around the farm.

National Farm Safety and Health week is Sept. 16-22 with the theme, “A Family Affair”, and is a time to raise awareness and reminders to be safe around the farm. In 2010, 596 deaths and 70,000 disabling injuries occurred in Agriculture, (National Education Center for Agricultural Safety, NECAS). According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, over one million children live on farms of which, on average, 113 youth less than 20 years of age, die from farm related injuries annually. Over 16,000 children were injured on farms in 2009. The hustle and bustle of the upcoming harvest is an opportune time to take a moment to think about safety around the farm.

  • Make sure all safety measures are in place on equipment: including ROPS (rollover protection structures) with seatbelts, PTO (power take off) and other safety guards. Check to make sure machinery is in good working order.
  • Ensure children are doing age-appropriate tasks. For more information and guidelines on what is age appropriate, visit the North American Guidelines for Children's Agricultural Tasks (NAGCAT) Guidelines.
  • Use appropriate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). Depending on the task, hearing protection, gloves, masks or other pieces of PPE may be advised for protection.

Taking a few minutes to review basic safety items can make a huge difference. As the saying goes, it’s better to be safe than sorry. For more information on National Farm Safety and Health week, visit the National Education Center for Agriculture Safety.

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