Farmers should avail of grant opportunities to purchase farm safety equipment to prevent farm accidents, according to the Macra president, Elaine Houlihan.
The advice has come during the 11th annual Farm Safety Week this week, led by the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA).
The grant opportunities were announced last month by Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine with special responsibility for farm safety, Martin Heydon.
He announced the opening of a new National Farm Safety Measure 2023, which will provide a financial contribution to participating farmers covering 60% of the eligible cost of quad bike helmets and power take-off (PTO) shaft covers.
A total of €1.5 million has been allocated to support farmers in the purchase of this equipment.
Houlihan said she “encourages all members to avail of the grant opportunity available. These measures will help to keep our farming families safe”.
“We need to make sure that everyone is availing of these aids to increase safety on farm. We do not want to lose anyone to a preventable farming accident. We all want to come home at the end of the day,” Houlihan said.
Farm safety week
The Macra president said: “Farm Safety Week serves as a reminder to pause and review your own farm safety.
“Although farm safety is a part of day-to-day farming, this week we want to bring it to the forefront of our members minds.
“We only know about the farm accidents which are being reported, the many near misses are never being reported.”
Farming was the sector with the highest number of work-related fatalities in 2022 with 13 deaths, according to the Health and Safety Authority (HSA.
“I hope that these new measures being introduced help to reduce the incidences of farm fatalities and injuries,” Houlihan concluded.