This week is National Farm Safety Week. According to the Iowa Farm Safety Council, 26.9 deaths occur per 100,000 workers annually in agriculture, which is 9 times higher than the average death rate for all industries combined. The Iowa Farm Safety Council works to increase knowledge about hazards and dangers in the industry and aims to help Iowans make better safety and health decisions. The council advises that producers should:
– avoid flowing grain suffocation hazards while unloading bins and wagons
– keep an eye out for bridged grain conditions
– make wise decisions when assigning tasks to youth
– retrofit tractors with rollover protective structures
The National Farm Safety Week began in 1944, when President Franklin Roosevelt signed the first proclamation due to high injury rates in agriculture impacting the war effort.