South Australia is the fifth largest state in Australia, with a population of 1,427,936 in 1996. In 1990-1991, Australian Bureau of Statistics data recorded the farm population to be 45,875, residing on 14,482 agricultural holdings. The most commonly produced commodities include sheep and lambs, cereal crops for grain, and meat cattle. These data suggest that on average there are nine deaths on all South Australian farms per annum. Injuries are also described in terms of workers compensation claims.
Australian agriculture pays higher insurance premiums in comparison to other industries.
On average this represents approximately 320 claims per annum. The largest numbers of claims involve sprain and strain injuries and muscular stress while handling objects other than liftin g, with upper extremities of the body being predominantly involved. The majority of claims were by people aged between 20-49 years. South Australian Ambulance data pertaining to farm injury are also provided, however the data includes injuries sustained in the forestry and mining industries and therefore conclusions are limited. This database describes 349 cases of injury where the location was agriculture, forestry, or mining, the majority of which were industrial or work related.