A NEW Safety Farm Zone is to be introduced at a renowned dairy showcase held in Carlisle next month.

H&H Safety, a health and safety support service for farm and rural businesses, is to introduce the zone into the timetable at this year’s Borderway UK Dairy Expo on Saturday, March 14.

Farmers visiting the event held at the Borderway Exhibition Centre at Rosehill in Carlisle will have the opportunity to assess and improve their own-farm safety through a timetable of talks and demonstrations.

The inaugural event is provided through the partnership of H&H Insurance Brokers and IRM Safety.

It will cover:

n Animal handling;

n Equipment security;

n Risk management tools;

n Accident prevention;

n First aid for farmers;

n Farm support.

Paul Graham, managing director of H&H Insurance Brokers, said that by raising awareness around key issues, H&H Safety hoped to provide a positive health and safety message while giving visitors advice and signposting to services they can trust.

“Through our strategic partnership with IRM Safety, and as proud sponsors, we have assembled this programme to provide rural visitors to the show with knowledge, advice and helpful support relating to the challenges of working safely within a farm environment. By raising awareness around some key issues, H&H Safety hopes to provide a positive health and safety message, while giving visitors advice and signposting to services they can trust.”

Neil Elsender, managing director of IRM Safety, added: “Agriculture is the most hazardous industry in the UK.

“This specialist area at UK Dairy Expo will help to raise awareness of the hazards on farms and the simple steps that can be taken to ensure that all of those involved go home safe each day.”

The H&H Safety Farm Zone will be specially branded within the pen area and will include a series of specialist presentations by industry experts on a variety of farm-related health and safety subjects. These will include:

n Importance of Equipment Security;

n Safe Use of Machinery;

n Safe Animal Handling Best Practice;

n The Importance of Formal Safety Training;

n Coping with an Accident Emergency before the Air Ambulance Arrives;

n The Importance of Protective Clothing;

n When Accidents Happen: Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institute’s (RABI) Support in a Crisis.