Minister from the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA), Andrew Muir, has said there are still “avoidable deaths” occurring on Northern Ireland’s farms.
The minister said he was “fully supportive” of the Farm Safety Foundation’s ‘Yellow Wellies’ farm safety campaign, stating that the industry’s poor safety record has been “slow to show improvement”.
Minister Muir said: “There have been seven fatalities in the last 12 months, including the tragic death over the past weekend.
“We all recognise that farming and the high-quality food it produces is of tremendous importance to the local economy.
“We must also recognise the importance of every single individual involved in the sector and do what we can to help them go about their work without risk of serious harm or injury.”
DAERA is a member of the Farm Safety Partnership, as well as the Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU), NFU Mutual (NFUM), the Young Farmers’ Clubs of Ulster (YFCU), the Northern Ireland Agricultural Producers Association (NIAPA) and Rural Support.
‘No room for complacency’
Muir said there is “no room for complacency” when it comes to farm safety, and urged all those who live and work on farms to think about their safety and the safety of others.
“Stop and think SAFE about the main hazards on farm – slurry, animals, falls and equipment,” he said.
The objectives of Farm Safety Week 2024 are:
- To drive improvements in the health and wellbeing of those living and working in the sector;
- To encourage those living and working in farming to take concrete actions to improve their attitudes to farming safely in the UK and Ireland;
- To highlight, not only the excessive numbers suffering fatal injuries and accidents on UK & Ireland farms but the dangers of ignoring near misses at work;
- To signpost farmers and farm workers to the resources available to help improve farm safety; and
- To shine a light on Farm Safety heroes who are working to drive a positive change in the industry.
