It's always crucial to prioritize safety on the farm. Remember, a safe farm is a productive farm! Here are Five tips to ensure your farm is safe:
Regularly inspect and maintain your farm equipment such as tractors, machinery, and tools. Ensure that they are working and promptly repair or replace damaged parts. Remember, each piece of equipment needs different maintenance. A tractor for example needs to have its oil, filters, hydraulics, belts, hoses and more checked, cleaned or replaced regularly. Document all maintenance. Keep maintenance logs and schedules organized so you don’t forget anything.
Practice caution when working with livestock. Use appropriate handling techniques and tools. Maintain proper fencing and enclosures to prevent animals from escaping and causing harm. Each animal has different needs when it comes to keeping it content and providing enough security to ensure it stays inside. This is especially important for larger animals. If a large animal, such as a cow wanders onto the road and causes an accident, the owner could be found liable. Remember that animals are easily startled by noises in their blind spot, so avoid coming at them from behind.
Implement fire safety measures on your farm, especially since fire is a leading cause for loss of farms. Maintain clear firebreaks, regularly remove dry vegetation and other flammable objects, and have fire extinguishers readily available. Electrical devices and their supporting items, like extension cords increase the risk of fires. Minimize their use, and ensure that these items are kept away from anything flammable. Inspect them regularly, and avoid using damaged equipment.
Vehicles like a harvester, seeder, sprayer, baler and tractor have equipment that can harm someone or something in its path. This should cause concern when you remember how wide this equipment can be. You need to be extra cautious when driving these vehicles.
On public roads, remember farm vehicles have the right of way. Although this can be freeing, if you let someone overtake you, you might be liable for a 3rd party insurance claim if an accident happens.
There’s multiple ways weather can be a pain for farmers. In addition to obvious things like bad days for outside animals, they can cause serious damage. A poorly maintained roof for example can cave in due to heavy snow, so ensure that buildings are maintained well enough to prevent this type of accident.
Remember, buildings aren’t the only things that bad weather can damage. Anti-hail netting can protect your crops from all forms of precipitation, as well as other threats like wind. Anti-hail netting also comes in different sizes, depending on the crop it's intended to protect. Also, keep your animals, and yourself indoors during any storms.
Something easy to overlook is the impact that wind can have on the spray you use on your crops. If your spray blows over to a neighbour’s yard, and it endangers the safety of them or anything on their farm, they could sue you for negligence. If you spray on a day where the ground is warmer than the air, then even a light breeze can carry it a long way. It is also advised you avoid spraying your crops on windy days.
We hope that your farming clients stay safe and have a productive farming season.
