Prevent grain entrapment – learn tips during BeGrainSafe Week

Aug 09, 2024
By Jean-Paul McDonald
Assistant Editor, North American Content, Farms.com

Annual Event Raises Awareness About Grain Handling Safety

The Canadian Agricultural Safety Association (CASA) invites everyone to participate in the fourth annual BeGrainSafe Week, taking place from August 12-18, 2024.

This crucial campaign aims to educate and raise awareness about the dangers of grain entrapment—a rapid and often fatal accident prevalent in the agricultural sector.

Since its inception in 2017, the BeGrainSafe program has focused on preventing these tragedies through comprehensive educational initiatives. These include on-site training for farmers and agricultural workers, rescue training, and broad public education efforts.

CASA’s CEO, Andrea Lear, emphasizes the importance of understanding and respecting the hazards associated with grain handling. With tragic incidents of grain entrapment still occurring across Canada, the BeGrainSafe initiative is more vital than ever.

Between 2011 and 2020, 27 fatal incidents were reported, underscoring the need for continued and enhanced safety measures. Many farmers think it doesn’t happen anymore, but these statistics prove that raising awareness of how to avoid and survive grain entrapment is essential.

During BeGrainSafe Week, CASA will offer a variety of resources tailored to improve safety practices around grain.

These resources are designed for easy access and sharing by the public, including safety tips, social media posts, and public service announcements.

For more information and to access these lifesaving resources, visit casa-acsa.ca/BeGrainSafe-Week.

By taking part in BeGrainSafe Week, you can contribute to creating safer farming environments and potentially saving lives within the agricultural community.

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.