Farmers have the “power to make safer choices” the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) has said.
Farm Safety Week, initiated by the Farm Safety Foundation in the UK and led by the IFA in Ireland, will take place from Monday 21 July to Friday 25 July.
The topics that will be covered throughout the week are farmer health and wellbeing, eye protection, vehicle and machinery safety, falls from heights, sepsis awareness and farm safety heroes.
IFA president Francie Gorman said Farm Safety Week is a powerful reminder that no job on the farm is worth a life.
“As farmers, we face unique risks every day, but we also have the power to make safer choices,” he said.
“This week, I urge every farming family to stop, think and take action to prevent accidents. Let’s protect ourselves, our loved ones and our future,” he added.
In addition, IFA farm family and social affairs chair Teresa Roche added: “The rate of farm accidents and fatalities is still far too high. It’s a painful reality that too many families in rural Ireland have faced.”
Safety
Teagasc will be issuing daily safety messages through media channels and holding a series of farmyard events during the week.
Minister of State with special responsibility for farm safety Michael Healy-Rae launched Farm Safety Week at the recent Teagasc Moorepark dairy open day.
He said that the rise in farm fatalities this year is of great concern and brings home how close we can be to a serious incident when working on the farm.
“Many of us, including myself, are fortunate to learn from an incident which could have left us with life-changing injuries or cost us our life.
“I am appealing to farmers to avoid taking risks, because when there is an incident, the consequences can be tragic.”
Attitude
Farm Safety Foundation manager Stephanie Berkeley said that attitudes and behaviours around farm safety are changing but the pace of change is slow.
“Too slow for the families of those we have lost in the industry and too slow for the thousands of farmers suffering every day with long-term ill-health or serious injuries as a result of their work,” she added.
“This year’s campaign offers an opportunity for a reset in the way we approach farm safety and risk-taking.
“Each of us can improve how we work on the farm, but we also have a responsibility not to tolerate poor safety behaviours in others.
"It’s not somebody else’s job to drive this change in culture and we cannot rely on luck when going about our daily tasks, luck has a habit of running out.”
Read more
Prioritising safety on farms around Ireland
Almost 1,500 safety inspections in agriculture, forestry and fishing in 2024
Farmers have the “power to make safer choices” the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) has said.
Farm Safety Week, initiated by the Farm Safety Foundation in the UK and led by the IFA in Ireland, will take place from Monday 21 July to Friday 25 July.
The topics that will be covered throughout the week are farmer health and wellbeing, eye protection, vehicle and machinery safety, falls from heights, sepsis awareness and farm safety heroes.
IFA president Francie Gorman said Farm Safety Week is a powerful reminder that no job on the farm is worth a life.
“As farmers, we face unique risks every day, but we also have the power to make safer choices,” he said.
“This week, I urge every farming family to stop, think and take action to prevent accidents. Let’s protect ourselves, our loved ones and our future,” he added.
In addition, IFA farm family and social affairs chair Teresa Roche added: “The rate of farm accidents and fatalities is still far too high. It’s a painful reality that too many families in rural Ireland have faced.”
Safety
Teagasc will be issuing daily safety messages through media channels and holding a series of farmyard events during the week.
Minister of State with special responsibility for farm safety Michael Healy-Rae launched Farm Safety Week at the recent Teagasc Moorepark dairy open day.
He said that the rise in farm fatalities this year is of great concern and brings home how close we can be to a serious incident when working on the farm.
“Many of us, including myself, are fortunate to learn from an incident which could have left us with life-changing injuries or cost us our life.
“I am appealing to farmers to avoid taking risks, because when there is an incident, the consequences can be tragic.”
Attitude
Farm Safety Foundation manager Stephanie Berkeley said that attitudes and behaviours around farm safety are changing but the pace of change is slow.
“Too slow for the families of those we have lost in the industry and too slow for the thousands of farmers suffering every day with long-term ill-health or serious injuries as a result of their work,” she added.
“This year’s campaign offers an opportunity for a reset in the way we approach farm safety and risk-taking.
“Each of us can improve how we work on the farm, but we also have a responsibility not to tolerate poor safety behaviours in others.
"It’s not somebody else’s job to drive this change in culture and we cannot rely on luck when going about our daily tasks, luck has a habit of running out.”
Read more
Prioritising safety on farms around Ireland
Almost 1,500 safety inspections in agriculture, forestry and fishing in 2024
SHARING OPTIONS