Make safety on Limerick farms a 'priority' every day of the year
‘I want the message to go out there that complacency is one of the greatest threats to safety on our farms’: Niall Collins
Farm Safety Week began on Monday with Minister of State Niall Collins reminding Limerick farmers of the ever-present risks on farms.
The minister of state at the Department of Agriculture said, unfortunately, farming accounts for an outsized proportion of all fatal workplace incidents and one life lost on a farm is one too many.
“That is why Farm Safety Week is so important. I am proud to support the campaign and get the message out there to farmers and farm families to always be safety conscious and take every precaution to protect everyone on the farm.
“My department provides dedicated funding of €3m for a range of safety, health and wellbeing initiatives and I would encourage all farmers to visit the department’s website on these initiatives,” said Mr Collins.
Measures such as TAMS3, the Capital Investment Scheme for Farm Safety Equipment and the National Farm Safety Measure 2026, which provides a financial contribution covering 60% of the eligible cost for up to four Power Take Off (PTO) shaft covers, provide real assistance, he said.
“I want the message to go out there that complacency is one of the greatest threats to safety on our farms, and I want to highlight to farmers the schemes and initiatives we have in place and I want to encourage every farmer to be careful, to check in on their own health and wellbeing and to do so throughout the year,” said Mr Collins.