A new initiative for farm safety has been launched by Irish Rural Link.

It is called The Farm Safety Community Champion programme and focuses on combatting labour and isolation concerns on Irish farms.

The aim of the programme is to equip local communities with a representative to act as a champion for farmer safety and well-being.

The programme consists of the training of nine regionally spread Farm Safety Community Champions from various backgrounds including farming, teaching, and community mentoring.

These champions will develop networks in their regions to connect farmers to their communities, delivering farm safety and well-being talks at local marts and community centres. Mark Riordan who is Chairperson of Kerry Macra is one of those representatives.

He has a diverse professional background in the agricultural and food industries.

He holds a Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Science and a Level 8 qualification from MTU Cork.

In 2024, he was crowned Macra Mr. Personality.

To further boost this initiative and assist with growing workforce concerns, Irish Rural Link is calling on rural communities to organise a ‘Farmer’s Haggart’ as part of this programme.

The Farmer’s Haggart is led by a local Farm Safety Community Champion, and will encourage farmers to assist one another in simple tasks on the farm.

The goal of this is to foster local connections between farmers to further develop rural farming networks, and support community wellbeing.