Farm Safety Improves Through 'Incremental Gain', Says Birkett
Improving health and safety is about incremental gain rather than a sudden decision, says Leeston farmer and Federated Farmers health and safety spokesman David Birkett.
University of Liverpool researchers Carri Westgarth and Marie McIntyre studied the behaviour of cows following several incidents: in one a retired academic was trampled to death by cattle in Oxford.
They searched newspaper reports over two decades and discovered 54 separate attacks — 24% of them fatal — by cattle on people out walking. Injuries included fractures from kicking, lacerations, punctured lungs, bruising, black eyes, joint dislocation, nerve damage and unconsciousness.
