28 Feb 500 planned farm inspections
Up to 500 farms will be inspected by the Health and Safety Authority (HSA) in March as part of a month-long campaign.
The intensive farm inspection campaign is set to begin on 1 March and will be particularly focussing on the safe handling of livestock. March is a busy period for calving and the risk of serious injury can be very high. The HSA advise farmers to take extra cautions during calving time as the likelihood of cows attacking is increased.
Farming Poll: Basic Payment Cuts Would Make Farmers Take Note Of Safety
Some 55% of farmers who responded to a recent Agriland poll said a cut to their Basic Payment would make them sit up and take notice of farm safety.
In addition, the poll results show that 76% of farmers think their farm is safe. This is despite the agricultural sector recording the highest number of fatalities over the past seven years.
Furthermore, almost three out of every four farmers (74%) said they felt their farm would pass a farm safety inspection, while 65% said farm safety inspections are stringent enough.
Source: www.agriland.ie