The farm is not only a home but an industrial work site. It has been estimated that 200 people die every year in farm related accidents. Children are especially at risk, with reports indicating that approximately 20 per cent of farm fatalities are youth under the age of 14. There is no other occupation in Canada where children live on an industrial work site. This makes farm safety a very important issue and something every farm family must work to improve.
Farm safety is an important issue that warrants more attention.
I applaud the efforts of the Canadian Coalition for Agricultural Safety and Rural Health, which includes organizations such as Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and the Canadian Federation of Agriculture, to educate the public and to address the serious problems of accidental death and injuries suffered by farmers and their families. I encourage our farming sector to make a determined effort to eradicate dangerous environments on their lands. Let us all work together to eliminate farm tragedies in 1996 and into the future. The 1996 theme is child safety. The Farm Safety Association has announced that farm related fatalities were down by 21 per cent in 1995.