Farmers need to be as safety conscious as foremen on construction sites

This letter is in response to last week’s Ear to the Ground programme aired on RTÉ.

It is with regret that so many lives have been lost on Irish farms over the years (23 this year so far) and it seems that the trend will continue in the wrong way unless there is a change in the way that farmers go about the day-to-day running of their farms.

I think it is the policy of the modern-day farmer to continue to farm in the way that his/her parents or their parents farmed, not taking into account the changes to farm machinery and also the lack of help on the modern-day farm. Most farmers now work on their own, whereas in the past neighbours would come in and help out. I, as a safety professional, can’t sit back any longer and do nothing. We need to take action now.