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LEAP into 2019 with Farm Safety and Health

LEAP into 2019 with Farm Safety and Health

The Minnesota Farm Bureau LEAP conference was held on January 26, 2019 in Bloomington MN.

LEAP stands for Leadership – Education – Advocacy – Promotion.

Carrie Klumb from UMASH and our partner at the Minnesota Department of Health was part of a panel titled: How to Host an On-the-Farm Event.

The discussion focused on hosting on farm events and what it takes to make one successful. Carrie joined the other panelists who were farm operators that had experience hosting events on their own farms. They represented a variety of types of farms, locations within Minnesota, and types of on-farm events. They covered topics including finding sponsors, advertising, securing a location and parking, preparing food, and how to get organized.

Carrie provided the perspective of what safety and health issues to think about before opening up your farm to the public. This included following national best practices for public animal contact venues, thinking about your order of operations (food first, then animals), have running soap and water for visitors, and educating visitors not only about farming but also about how to be safe and healthy around animals.

Carrie noted that many times people don’t think about these important aspects of an on farm event. Both audience members and panelists alike thanked her for bringing these health and safety issues to the beginning of the planning process.

UMASH provided a variety of resources to reinforce Carrie’s message including laminated posters (handwashing, hand sanitizer, staying healthy around animals), national best practices checklists, handouts for visitors and information on the Safer FACEs online certification program.

These and other resources are available on the UMASH Agritourism webpage.