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Each year around 20 Nebraskans die as a result of agriculture-related accidents and injuries, according to the University of Nebraska- Lincoln.
"The tragic thing about these accidents is that all of them are preventable," said Sharry Nielsen, a University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension educator in Kearney/Franklin counties.
Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer proclaimed March 2-8 as Agricultural Safety Awareness Week. The 2008 theme, "Growing the Most Important Crop," emphasizes making farms and ranches safer for farmers, their family members and employees, with special emphasis on children.
Farm safety days organized by national and local sponsors throughout Nebraska reached over 3,400 youth and 1,000 volunteers in 2007 in an attempt to reduce the number of agricultural fatalities and injuries, according to Nielsen.
Tractor overturns historically have been the greatest cause of agricultural deaths, but in the last three to four years all-terrain vehicles have passed tractors as the most dangerous aspect of agriculture, said Dave Morgan, safety engineer at UNL.
Morgan said age plays a large role in how children are injured or killed on farms and ranches. Toddlers are most likely to get run over.
Children 5 to 12 years old are killed most often by falling off equipment when riding along. As kids reach their teens they start making many of the same mistakes adults do, Morgan said.
In the proclamation, Schafer said people of all ages, but children in particular, are at risk of injuries on the farm.
He also encouraged farmers and ranchers to learn more about preventing workplace hazards that are unique to agriculture.
"I call upon all Americans to respect safe farm practices and to increase their understanding of agriculture in their states and local communities," said Schafer.
"Learning how to reduce the risks associated with feeding, clothing and fueling our nation is important for farmers and ranchers, so they can continue 'growing the most important crop,' our children," said Bob Stallman, president of the American Farm Bureau Federation.
Kerri Ericson, who has organized safety camps in Holdrege with help from the Progressive Agriculture Foundation in 1998-99, said it is easy to become too relaxed about farm safety when you grow up in agriculture. She believes complacency may be the single greatest factor contributing to farm accidents.
"It is the attitude that no one can get hurt," Ericson said.
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