farmers in reflective vests

Canadians urged to be farm safety champions

Be the Difference theme of Canadian Agricultural Safety Week 2015, which runs from March 15-21


Reading Time: < 1 minute Canadians are being encouraged to become farm safety champions as a part of Canadian Agricultural Safety Week 2015, which runs from March 15-21. This year’s theme is Be the Difference, and organizers want to inspire all Canadians to become farm safety champions through champion testimonials, farmer resources and a social media contest. “This year, we […] Read more

A hands-on lesson in dugout safety challenges kids to climb a white plastic ramp that’s the same angle as a real dugout.

Looking for a lesson in farm safety? Head to the city — Safety City, that is

Reading Time: 2 minutes Farm kids learn by doing — and that’s how farm safety is taught at Safety City. “Every program starts with a lesson in the classroom,” said executive director Judy Douglas, who manages the non-profit organization in Red Deer. “And in every program they move on to do some activity. They always practise what they learned.” […] Read more


Farmers still get failing grade on safety implementation

Farmers still get failing grade on safety implementation

Reading Time: 2 minutes Canadian farmers need to make safety a higher priority, says the executive director of the Canadian Agriculture Safety Association. “We need to convince farmers to embrace a safety culture that is part of their daily routine,” Marcel Hacault told the association’s recent annual meeting. On average 104 people die in accidents on Canadian farms annually, […] Read more

People with dementia will often forget a step in a series of steps, and may stop doing one activity because they don’t know what the next step is.

Alzheimer’s on the farm carries special risks

People living on farms face additional challenges when dealing with Alzheimer’s

Reading Time: 4 minutes Watching Alzheimer’s steal away a loved one is always painful, but there are additional challenges when you’re living on a farm. Trent, a grain farmer from east-central Alberta, knows this all too well. He farmed with his father, now in his late 70s, until five years ago. “I knew Dad was getting older and getting […] Read more


 photo: supplied

Be safe when moving equipment

There are many pitfalls — from not wearing a seatbelt to free-wheeling in higher gears — that increase the chances of being in a serious accident

Reading Time: 3 minutes According to the Canadian Agricultural Injury Reporting (CAIR) 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 […] Read more

Online tool gives producers a voice for equipment safety

Online tool gives producers a voice for equipment safety

'Speak Up for Safer Equipment' to handle safety concerns linked to ag production

Reading Time: < 1 minute The Canadian Agricultural Safety Association (CASA) has developed a new online tool to give farmers an opportunity to express their concerns about possible hazards with farm equipment. The Speak Up For Safer Equipment tool is intended to provide a way for farmers, manufacturers and standards organizations to talk about safety concerns with agricultural equipment manufactured […] Read more


FCC Ag Safety Fund accepting applications

This year’s edition of the fund is offering $100,000 for delivery of tractor and machinery safety training

Reading Time: < 1 minute The Canadian Agricultural Safety Association (CASA) is accepting applications for the 2015-16 edition of Farm Credit Canada’s Ag Safety Fund. This year, $100,000 will be given to organizations to deliver tractor and machinery safety training in a community setting to Canadian farmers and farm workers. According to Canadian Agricultural Injury Reporting data, between 1990 and […] Read more

hydro pole and power lines

Be safe around power lines

Reading Time: < 1 minute Joint Utility Safety Team – Every day, two to three Albertans needlessly risk their lives by contacting an overhead or underground power line. In 2013, this translated into about 782 power line incidents in Alberta. Although that’s a significant decrease from the 934 incidents reported in 2012, power line safety should be top of mind for […] Read more


farm gate on a misty morning

Set boundaries and be safe

Straight From the Hip: Anything that risks the well-being of those on the farm shouldn’t be tolerated, and women need to make sure that message is heard

Reading Time: 3 minutes Women in agriculture are exposed to the risk of injury every day. Whether you work full time, part time, are an employee or partner, women and girls on Alberta farms need to ensure they are protected from injury and disability. That starts by setting boundaries for ourselves. A woman I’ll call Pat works in partnership […] Read more

Cattle holding pen.

Life changed in a heartbeat for Bonnyville rancher Ray Murphy

Ray Murphy was in a hurry the day he made the fateful decision 
to try to replace a lost CCIA tag on a bull by himself

Reading Time: 4 minutes Ray Murphy had a bad heart. That’s why he was so busy on that fateful day — Sept. 22, 2009. The Bonnyville cattleman’s pre-op appointment with his surgeon for open heart surgery was the next day and so he needed to get that week’s cattle shipment moving from Murphy Livestock his 300-head purebred Angus and […] Read more