Recent Wisconsin Farm Related Fatalities reports indicate that injuries and deaths remain a persistent issue.
“This is incredibly unfortunate, given the many other challenges farm families and farm workers are facing here in this day and age,” said one of the reports’ co-authors, John Shutske, University of Wisconsin-Madison Professor and Agricultural Safety & Health Specialist. “We saw a high of 41 deaths in 2017. And, then a low of 28 in 2020, but climbing back in these last three years, we looked at around 30-35 deaths.”
The National Farm Medicine Center, Marshfield Clinic Research Institute, the University of Wisconsin-Madison Division of Extension and UW’s College of Agricultural and Life Sciences recently published farm fatalities reports for the years 2021, 2022 and 2023. The organizations teamed up in 2017 using data from AgInjuryNews.org and Wisconsin Department of Health Services death certificates to reinstate the annual reports, which track farm and farm work-related injuries and deaths.
The reports from 2021-2023 were co-authored by Shutske, with Bryan Weichelt and Roger Aby, both scientists with the National Farm Medicine Center, Marshfield Clinic Research Institute. The reports raise specific concerns related to aging farmers, roadway collisions, ATVs/UTVs and suicide.
Aging farmers at high risk
“We continue to see older individuals (65 or older), particularly men, at high risk,” Shutske said. “Going back to 2017, in most years, individuals 65 or older made up around 50 percent of all of the fatalities recorded each year. In these recent three years, individuals over age 65 constituted 46 percent of fatalities in 2021, 55 percent in 2022, and 50 percent in 2023.
“This is important as our ‘average’ farm owner/operator age continues to climb per the most recent USDA Census of Ag data. Older workers present unique risks and potential vulnerabilities,” Shutske said.
Roadway collisions involving slow-moving farm equipment
The team analyzing Wisconsin farm workplace deaths noted a modest decline in the number of roadway-collision deaths among farm equipment operators, motor vehicle drivers and occupants. There were nine in 2017, a low of three in 2022 and four in 2023, the most recent report.
Statewide, special emphasis on slow-moving vehicle (SMV) emblem distribution has been placed by partner organizations such as the National Farm Medicine Center, UW-Madison’s Agricultural Safety Program and other cooperators, Shutske said. The Milwaukee-based Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) offers an excellent guide outlining the required lighting and marking for agricultural equipment, including tractors, implements, larger self-propelled machines and other equipment, he said.
Other areas of concern
ATVs-UTVs: This farm fatalities data analysis project was not set up to study incidents involving all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) or utility task vehicles (UTVs) in which a death occurred that was not related to agricultural work, Shutske said. “However, we noted several fatalities each year as ATVs and UTVs were being used in recreational settings, on the highway for transportation, or in other likely rural, non-farming uses.” The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources maintains summaries and annual reports of ATV incidents. In 2021, they recorded 47 fatalities, 21 in 2022 and 32 in 2023.
Suicides: Shutske also noted that this analysis project was not set up to study suicide incidents among farmers or farm workers. “However, recent studies remind us that the rates of suicide among farmers are measurably higher than for most other occupations. Risk factors include ready access to firearms on farms, the financial and workload burdens associated with farming, issues connected to physical health, and the stigma associated with seeking mental health care and support,” Shutske said.
Several statewide, community and farming organizations focus on farmer mental health and suicide prevention, Shutske said. The Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection operates the Farm Center, which provides a range of support services, including farmer wellness counseling services and a 24/7 Farmer Wellness Helpline: 800-942-2474.
Data sources
Two data sources provided the basis for the fatality reports: the death certificate registry maintained by the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, Bureau of Health Information; and news reports from Wisconsin daily and weekly newspapers, collected and collated through AgInjuryNews.org. Analysis can be time-consuming. Case-by-case verification is conducted to confirm that the death resulted from a farm work exposure or hazard, and that the person was actually doing farm work at the time. Recreational incidents on farm property and unrelated medical events are excluded.
The United States lacks a single, comprehensive, and continuous centralized national database that tracks all fatal and non-fatal agricultural injuries and illnesses.
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