Safety training for farm students

Reading Time: < 1 minute Syngenta Canada is partnering with Agriculture for Life to bring the Young Farm Workers Safety Day programming to Alberta youth. Safety Day targets students in Grades 9 to 12 with interactive sessions on the risks associated with rural and farm environments. It includes practical, hands-on learning on a variety of safety topics such as risk […] Read more

Program helps injured farmers get back to work

The Back to Ag Program helps fund adaptive technology for producers who have suffered a traumatic injury

Reading Time: 2 minutes Injured farmers are urged to apply to the Back to Ag Program, which provides funding to support the cost of adaptive technology to producers who have suffered a traumatic injury. “Through Back to Ag, we can help injured farmers return to farm work safely and productively,” said Glen Blahey, agricultural health and safety specialist with […] Read more


Proper safety gear is a good first step, but training is critical.

Sow the seeds of farm workplace safety this winter

Here’s a list of recommended courses for reducing the risk on your farm

Reading Time: 2 minutes Winter is a good time to make your farm safer. “It’s the time of year when some farmers take a step back from their hectic physical farm work and make assessments for the future,” said Kenda Lubeck, a provincial farm safety co-ordinator. Here are some courses you might consider taking: First aid: This is a […] Read more

4-H Canada CEO Shannon Benner announces $600,000 in funding for scholarship and farm safety programs, in partnership with CN. (Lisa Guenther photo)

Railway funds to deliver safety, leadership programs

4-H Canada is set to launch a new youth leadership program, along with a farm safety fund, thanks to a $600,000 contribution from Canadian National Railway (CN). Executives at 4-H and CN unveiled the 4-H Canada Leadership Excellence Awards of Distinction (LEAD) at Canadian Western Agribition on Wednesday morning. Each year LEAD will award four […] Read more


New Safety Smarts instructor in Peace Country

Reading Time: < 1 minute Carla Richard is the new Safety Smarts instructor at the Farm Safety Centre in Peace Country. The Safety Smarts program teaches rural children from kindergarten to Grade 6 how to recognize and react safely to a wide variety of potential farm hazards. “The program has been running since 1998 and this year it will reach a […] Read more

Seven-year-old Ernie Friesen, who lost his arm in a grain auger,
is spreading the farm safety message as this year’s national safety ambassador for The War Amps.

The ever-present danger on our farms and ranches

A mother and two experts talk about the need to do more when it comes to farm safety

Reading Time: 5 minutes Peter Friesen knew something was wrong as soon as the auger stalled. His warning to his five-year-old son Ernie to stay back and “not come any closer than this,” had gone unheeded. The boy had been running around with a dog nearby, and Peter had warned him to stay back, to “not come any closer […] Read more


Tools for making your farm a safer place

There are many free resources, including fact sheets, videos, training programs, and materials designed especially for children

Reading Time: 2 minutes There are a host of educational materials on safety available for farm families. The Canadian Agricultural Safety Association was created in 1993 to promote farm safety and its vision is “a country where no one is hurt farming.” Its website has dozens of fact sheets that are broken down by topics. Among the 17 topics […] Read more

Community and country rally to help farm family

There’s been an outpouring of condolences 
and trust fund contributions

Reading Time: 3 minutes The deaths of three young sisters in a farm accident earlier this month has brought an outpouring of support. The tragic deaths of Catie Bott, age 13, and her twin sisters Dara and Jana, both 11, has had a “far-reaching impact” on people both near and far, said Pastor Brian Allan, a close family friend […] Read more


In this training simulation, emergency responders first cut open a portion of a grain auger to assess how badly the ‘victim’ is injured and then cut the auger to free its leg.

While you’re harvesting, first responders hope they aren’t needed

It’s a dangerous time of year — 
here are some tips for making it safer

Reading Time: < 1 minute Even as farmers were out in their fields, dozens of first responders from the Foothills Fire Department were preparing for the worst. More than 20 members of the 150-person department attended a training session at Heritage Pointe Fire Station in De Winton earlier this month. Among the sessions was a hands-on practice in which a […] Read more

The dangers are well known and yet 13 per cent of farm-related fatalities are traffic related.

Minimize your road risk during harvest

Take a moment to review the hazards of taking farm equipment on 
public roads

Reading Time: 2 minutes According to the Canadian Agricultural Injury Reporting program, 13 per cent of farm-related fatalities across Canada are traffic related, and most involved tractors. During the busy fall harvest season, farmers often travel long distances between fields, and this requires transporting equipment on public roads throughout rural Alberta. Farm equipment is oversized and slow compared to […] Read more