The number of fatalities on Irish farms has dropped this year, reversing an upward trend which had seen the Irish farm become the most dangerous workplace in the State.
To date this year, 12 fatalities have occurred in the sector, compared with 19 for 2003 and an average of 20 per year for the last decade. Two of the farm deaths this year were children.
The drop in fatality figures was welcomed by Mr Frank Laffey, national safety officer with Teagasc and chairperson of the Health and Safety Authority, Farm Safety Partnership advisory committee.
"While one death is one too many, the figures do show a marked improvement when compared with recent annual figures," he said.
Mr Laffey also said there has been a considerable uptake by farmers undertaking risk assessments on their farms.
Research just completed by Teagasc's national farm survey shows that 28 per cent of farmers nationally had completed the mandatory farm safety self-assessment document or a safety statement. This compared with just 9.6 per cent in 2001.
Mr Laffey said the research clearly indicates that farmers are "buying into" the self-assessment document sent to every farmer last year.
"The style of the document, which asks key questions about farm-safety standards and practices, is 'clicking' with farmers, and it is providing a stimulus to put safety controls in place."
Mr Laffey noted a marked increase in farmers attending Teagasc health and safety courses since the self-assessment document was issued, with over 10,000 farmers receiving training.
The Teagasc research indicates that 35 per cent of dairy farmers have completed a risk assessment, while the corresponding figure is 24 per cent for cattle and sheep farmers and 33 per cent for tillage farmers, respectively.
Mr Laffey added that the drop in farm deaths and the increase in risk assessments of farms provide evidence that the farming sector is at last turning the corner regarding improving the dreadful record of farm fatalities.
He urged every farmer who has not yet completed a risk assessment for their farm to "put it top of their list of New Year's resolutions" to complete this task early in 2005.
Meanwhile, the first EU estimate of agricultural income for 2004 showed a year-on-year increase of 3.3 per cent in the European Union as a whole. This increase was primarily due to the contribution of the new member-states, where agricultural income increased by an average of 53.8 per cent, according to a commission statement.
This shows the overwhelmingly positive impact of accession to the EU on the agricultural sector, through access to the single market and implementation of the Common Agricultural Policy.
"Income in the 'old' 15 member- states also increased this year, by 0.8 per cent," the statement added.
"These results are excellent news for European farmers, particularly in the new member-states," Mrs Mariann Fischer Boel, Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, said last week. "They show that the concerns voiced by some in the lead-up to enlargement were unfounded."