National Farm Safety Week commences

Organised by Farmsafe Australia, this year’s National Farm Safety Week will run all of this week until July 25, with each day dedicated to a specific topic.

This year’s theme is “Farming for a Future” and will focus on risk assessment and awareness; planning and mitigation (particularly in light of the recent drought, bushfire, floods and COVID-19) and most importantly, mental health and support.

The key themes of National Farm Safety Week include:

Farmsafe Australia said being aware of risks and taking the right steps to mitigate them is more important than ever, however farmers take safety for granted time and time again.

“Farmers and farm employees generally know the risks associated with the tasks that they perform day to day, however a combination of familiarity, complacency, fatigue, stress et cetera, can be the difference between business as usual and tragedy on farm,” said Farmsafe Australia chairman, Charles Armstrong.

“That is why the importance of on farm inductions, site specific risk assessments with follow up mitigation techniques and daily toolbox talks cannot be stressed enough.”

A new suite of downloadable toolbox talks will soon be made available to Aussie farmers for free, courtesy of Farmsafe Australia. They are five minute fact sheets that can be chatted through while employees finish their morning coffees in the workshop and then easily stored in a clipboard in the toolbox.

Farmsafe Australia is also shining a light on mental health and stressing the importance for farmers to open up to loved ones or mates when feeling down in the dumps, and not keep it all to themselves.

“We need to stop expecting farmers to just ‘brush it off’ or ‘pick themselves back up’, even if they are the toughest people we know,” said Farmsafe Australia.

“What we need is real rural mental health assistance for farmers and their families. We need individual coping strategies; not a one size fits all approach. There is no denying times are tough in the city, but the pressures of urban dwelling are different to the pressures of country life.”

Farmsafe Australia urges farmers struggling with their mental health to think about a coping strategy that works best for them, whether it be seeking professional help, chatting to loved ones or simply go for a drive with mates.

“Remember, when the going gets tough... the tough can still ask for help.”

The past 18 months has seen the Australian elements throw everything possible at farmers -drought, fire, floods and now a global pandemic.

While farmers can’t control the weather and elements, there is something they can do – and that is to have a mitigation plan, said Farmsafe Australia chairman, Charles Armstrong.

“The plan will not prevent the drought or the bushfire or the flood from affecting your property, but it will reduce your losses,” he said.

Disaster management and mitigation plans will help farmers and their families identify risks, assess priority actions and follow a well thought out plan when the situation arises.

“It is impossible to assume how you will react when you are in the situation so it is best to make all your critical decisions before the stress and the fear are involved,” Armstrong said.

Some practical solutions that can be organised in advance are installing water tanker units on trucks at the beginning of bushfire seasons, doing routine checks and maintenance on pumps, installing fire breaks on your property and ensuring that evacuation plans are up to date.

As much as farm biosecurity is about protecting crops and animals from diseases, it is also about farmers taking the right steps to protect themselves, especially in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Farmsafe Australia said.

COVID-19 in particular has catapulted farm biosecurity measures into day-to-day business conversation, so much so that industry had to work extremely quickly to ensure that farmers had access to the most up to date and relevant advice to ensure that they were doing everything possible to protect themselves, their employees and their businesses.

However, Coronavirus is not the only disease that farmers are currently contending with. Q fever is another illness that is causing significant issues with regard to farmer health. Q fever is caused by the bacterium Coxiella burnetii and is spread to humans from infected animals through contact with placenta, urine, faeces, milk and blood. They can spread through the air, soil and dust.

There is currently no vaccine available in Australia for animals. Although a vaccine is available for humans, farmers report significant issues with affordability and accessibility.

The disease brings with it serious health risks, with two per cent of those who contract it facing life threatening failure of their heart valves which can lead to death, reported Farmsafe Australia. About 25 per cent of those who become infected with Q fever have ongoing health issues such as chronic fatigue.

The NSW Farmers Association have set up a National Q Fever Taskforce to address this issue and advocate for improved access to the Q Fever vaccine. More information can be found at nswfarmers.org.au

Follow Farmsafe Australia’s social media pages (On Twitter, Instagram and Facebook) for further information on National Farm Safety Week and on how you can be involved.