FarmSafe podcast works to reduce injuries, fatalities for farmers during harvest season

The University of Iowa College of Public Health's Great Plains Center for Agricultural Health is now working to help farm workers in Iowa stay safe during harvest season through a podcast.

Hosted by Dr. Renee Anthony and Kate Crawford, FarmSafe aims to share first-hand stories from farmers and real-life tips from experts to make safer decisions on the farm. Currently, the agriculture industry is the most dangerous sector in the county according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. On average, there are 573 fatalities a year or the equivalent of 23 deaths per 100,000 workers.

"Here in Iowa, we have been involved in tracking all occupational fatalities and about a third of occupation fatalities in Iowa are to farmers," said Anthony. "We have a big agricultural industry in our state and we really want to make sure that this big industry is also the safest industry."

Anthony and Crawford both work at the Great Plains Center for Agricultural Health. Previously, they would attend trade shows and conventions to speak to farmers and raise awareness. With COVID-19 shutting down many events over the past year, they looked for another solution through the podcast.

"We know that farmers listen to podcasts, listen to radio when they're in their tractors driving throughout the day," said Crawford.

Each FarmSafe episode focuses on a different area of safety. The past week discussed ATVs on farms and how children can stay safe.

"Interactions with animals and equipment and heavy machinery and all these difference types of hazards. But it's also compounded by that a lot of them are working alone or in isolated areas," said Crawford. "Shedding some light on that workforce and what they go through is educational for a lot of folks."

Anthony and Crawford are now looking for local farmers to share their story. If interested, they ask to reach out through their website.

"If you got a story to tell, we'd be glad to share it with others," says Anthony. "Most of the time as a small business entity, they have a lot on their plate. So what we try to do is identify how to help them juggle their plate of a whole bunch of stuff and give them resources to be efficient and effective and do things safely."

The podcast can be heard online, on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and other sources.