As farmers begin harvesting, Iowans are reminded to be careful around farm machinery on area roads. Over 85 percent of Iowa’s land is used in agriculture, and last year Iowa’s farmers harvested more than $13 billion worth of corn and soybeans. The fall harvest time is busy and is the time when agriculture reports the highest number of injuries, according to Iowa State University and Extension. Senator Charles Grassley encourages all of those on the roads to keep an eye out for farm machinery, “I’d be saying this to the people that are driving farm machinery down the road and people that aren’t farmers but are on the same road: during the next two months be very cautious as you approach farm machinery so somebody doesn’t get killed.”

The Iowa Farm Safety Council is encouraging farms to follow safe practices, like only using tractors that have rollover protective structures, saying no to extra riders on tractors, and understanding that people near tractors may be obscured from the operator’s sight.