Move over shark wranglers, farmings far riskier

While four people worldwide lost their lives in 2008 from shark attacks, there were 20 farm related fatalities in New Zealand over the same period. This has prompted Federated Farmers, ACC and FMG to organise a series of free seminars on risk management.

“Poor on-farm risk management has caused the number of farm accidents to grow over the last five years. This increasing trend is simply unacceptable,” says Frank Brenmuhl, Federated Farmers Health and Safety spokesperson.

“The fatalities don’t take into account the number of non-fatal accidents. These all have a major affect on farm viability by way of lost production, lost labour and other costs. There’s real bottom line savings to be made through proper and effective risk management.

“The sad fact is that many of these accidents could have been avoided. The growing number of dairy conversions has introduced new people to a side of agriculture that they previously had little experience in. Health and safety is not something that you can pay lip service to. That is why it’s a big priority for the Federation.

“ACC statistics show that a ‘moderate’ accident causes some $4000 in lost production each week. When you consider that farmers are eight times more likely than anyone else to be involved in a work place accident, this has major ramifications.

“That’s why we have worked with FMG and ACC to deliver a series of free risk management seminars throughout the country. These will provide farmers with the tools, processes and options to assess risk and effectively manage it. This won’t be a tick box exercise. Each seminar is designed to be practical and implementable. Mitigating on-farm risks will also shave money off farmers’ bottom lines.

“Good risk management is good for business. That’s why agricultural employers and employees should attend a seminar for the good of themselves, their workers and their businesses. Because when you’re farming, it literally pays to be proactive when it comes to managing risks,” Mr Brenmuhl concluded.

Risk Management Seminars will take place across New Zealand:
· South Island 13 - 14 May
· Auckland/Northland 15 - 19 May
· King Country 20 - 21 May
· Hawke’s Bay/Manawatu 26 - 27 May
· Waikato/Central 28 May - 4 June

More information can be found at www.fedfarm.org.nz/ournews  by selecting events and training.