As producers begin to hit the fields for the start of the 2025 planting season, it’s always a good idea to remind ourselves of the practices that keep farmers, their families, and their workers safe. National Grain Safety Week, which runs March 24-28 this year, is an industry wide initiative aimed at raising awareness of the preventable hazards that impact hundreds of farmers every year.
Unfortunately, farming is also one of the deadliest and most hazardous professions in the world. Globally, agriculture ranks alongside construction and mining as the most dangerous industry. Nationally, 60 to 70 per 100,000 farmers are killed annually. Nonfatal injuries occur to about 33% of the farming population in the United States, with 3% of accidents resulting in a permanent disability.
Most farm accidents occur when grain is being moved or transported and someone enters a bin to walk down the moving grain or is buried by falling grain that was bridged to the walls and suddenly collapsed. Moving grain acts like quicksand and can bury a worker in seconds.
The ninth annual “Stand Up 4 Grain Safety Week” is hosted by the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), together with its partners in the ag industry. The week-long awareness campaign will provide employers and workers with educational opportunities, resources, and training on best safety practices.
Free virtual safety sessions begin at 10 a.m. CST each day. The kickoff will be live-streamed from the Kent Feed Mill and Grain Science Center at Iowa State University in Ames, IA. Registrants will have free access to virtual training sessions during the rest of the week, with each day featuring a different focus and resources. More details about the presentations and registration instructions can be found HERE.
The virtual event schedule includes:
March 25: Learn how fatigue affects our work, safety and health. 10 AM – 11 AM CDT
March 26: Learn how to plan and prepare for emergencies from extreme weather to grain bin entrapments. 10 AM – 11 AM CDT
March 27: Worksite Preventive Maintenance 10 AM – 11 AM CDT (BONUS SESSION: Railway Safety at 2:00 p.m. CST)
March 28: Alternate Grain Storage 10 AM – 11 AM CDT
