We often talk about young people as the most vulnerable in terms of farm safety but the statistics actually tell us that older people are one of if not the most vulnerable groups on farms.
Unfortunately, the number that die in farm related accidents changes by the week, but there have been at least 12 fatalities on farms this year and we are only half way through 2025.
There is a little bit of everything to blame with issues like falls from heights, falls from bales and farm construction-related fatalities. We tend to automatically blame very young looking tractor drivers as obvious “high risk” candidates.
Statistics
However, the statistics suggest that over 65s are more of an issue. It’s the older farmers among us rather than the young tractor drivers.
I’m not absolving young drivers from doing the wrong thing on the road, however, I’m just making the point that the older generation are as much a risk category as the young category. As the summer holidays mean more people around the farm, additional precautions are necessary.
On many farms the breeding season is cooling off in the next number of weeks, and managing stock bulls that are not overworked must be priority.
Keeping them away from uninvited guests and strangers should be paramount. If they must be housed for safety then that should also be considered.
All farms in catchment crucial
The 500 or so farmers that attended the Irish Grassland Association summer tour heard Kevin Twomey extol the virtues of grass-based spring calving that is positive for profits, but also the environment.
Kevin and Margaret are farming on the banks of the Blackwater, and the water quality in this catchment is improving despite more stock entering the region. We can get dragged into depression on derogation, but the point was made that nutrient management from all farms is crucial to water quality success, not just derogation farms.
Teagasc said the average dairy farm is set to lose €40,000 per farm and Kevin backed this up, suggesting if Ireland loses the derogation, it would cost him up to €400 per cow in lost profit.
We often talk about young people as the most vulnerable in terms of farm safety but the statistics actually tell us that older people are one of if not the most vulnerable groups on farms.
Unfortunately, the number that die in farm related accidents changes by the week, but there have been at least 12 fatalities on farms this year and we are only half way through 2025.
There is a little bit of everything to blame with issues like falls from heights, falls from bales and farm construction-related fatalities. We tend to automatically blame very young looking tractor drivers as obvious “high risk” candidates.
Statistics
However, the statistics suggest that over 65s are more of an issue. It’s the older farmers among us rather than the young tractor drivers.
I’m not absolving young drivers from doing the wrong thing on the road, however, I’m just making the point that the older generation are as much a risk category as the young category. As the summer holidays mean more people around the farm, additional precautions are necessary.
On many farms the breeding season is cooling off in the next number of weeks, and managing stock bulls that are not overworked must be priority.
Keeping them away from uninvited guests and strangers should be paramount. If they must be housed for safety then that should also be considered.
All farms in catchment crucial
The 500 or so farmers that attended the Irish Grassland Association summer tour heard Kevin Twomey extol the virtues of grass-based spring calving that is positive for profits, but also the environment.
Kevin and Margaret are farming on the banks of the Blackwater, and the water quality in this catchment is improving despite more stock entering the region. We can get dragged into depression on derogation, but the point was made that nutrient management from all farms is crucial to water quality success, not just derogation farms.
Teagasc said the average dairy farm is set to lose €40,000 per farm and Kevin backed this up, suggesting if Ireland loses the derogation, it would cost him up to €400 per cow in lost profit.
SHARING OPTIONS