The Plain Facts ... About Farm and Ranch Safety

• Farmers, ranchers and their families live, work and play at the workplace.
  Agriculture is a unique industry in that so many of its workers live, work and enjoy recreational activities at the worksite. This often exposes them to diverse hazards associated with machinery, chemicals and livestock.
  
  
• Farmers operate and maintain heavy­duty equipment and machinery.
  Farm equipment operators must be well­versed on the many functions associated with diverse and powerful machinery. Increased productivity in agriculture is often a factor of improved equipment for performing the work. This equipment is often more powerful and complex, requiring the full time and attention of equipment operators.
  
  
• Farm and ranch children are often exposed to hazards associated with farm work.
  Children may be endangered as innocent bystanders or as passengers on farm tractors or equipment. Some children begin their farming chores at an age earlier than their emotional or physical maturity can safely handle — at times without adequate training or supervision.
  
  
• Farmers and ranchers face a variety of hazardous environmental factors.
  Weather, farmstead terrain and atmospheric conditions all present a host of hazards and risks to agricultural workers. In their attempt to remain profitable, farmers and ranchers must often overcome environmental conditions such as droughts, steep and unforgiving slopes, and dangerous facility atmospheric conditions.
  
  
• Farmers are at increased exposure for motor vehicle accidents.
  Farm machinery is often involved in highway accidents involving other vehicles. Thousands of highway accidents involving farm machinery occur each year even though farm equipment is clearly marked with a slow moving vehicle (SMV) emblem. Drivers have difficulty anticipating the operational intentions of farm machinery being driven on rural highways.
  
  
• Farmers and ranchers are often unintentionally exposed to hazards.
  Farms and ranches in the United States are essentially unregulated small businesses. Safety and health standards for many businesses are not enforced on family farms because of special exemptions provided to agriculture.

Information presented by Beauchamp & McSpadden Agribusiness & Farm Insurance and supplied by the National Safety Council's Agricultural Division.

Permission to reprint granted by the National Safety Council, a membership organization dedicated to protecting life and promoting health   http://www.nsc.org