Each and every farmer and crofter in Scotland needs to rethink the risk when it comes to safety on our farms and crofts, says NFU Scotland vice president Andrew Connon.

Speaking after attending the 10th anniversary Farm Safety Foundation conference in Birmingham recently, he described how the industry’s appalling safety record hit him hard.

“There have been thirty-two deaths on UK farms this year and there is a yearly average of 23,000 reported cases of serious injury or long term ill health within the industry," he said.

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“As an industry, we must be under no illusions of how poor our record on safety is. While farming makes up 1% of the working population of the UK, it accounts for 16% of all workplace deaths.

"It is apparent that despite making great strides to tackle mental health and wellbeing, as an industry we are still failing to address farm safety adequately. We really need to get our heads together with likeminded organisations and ensure that farms and crofts become safer places.

"For the sake of our family and friends, each and every one of us needs to rethink the risk”

Round-up

With numbers rising nationally, lambs met with slower demand at Newton Stewart yesterday, averaging 360p/kg and selling to £190/head for heavy Texels from Airyhassen while Blue Texels from Redbrae peaked at 390p/kg.

Hoggs sold to £170/head for two pens of heavy Suffolks from Culmalzie or to 322p/kg for Texels from Carslae, who also topped the cast ewe section at £181. Tups peaked at £161 for Texels from Barquill, with Barlaughlan leading the Blackies at £120.

Bull calves at Dumfries yesterday peaked at £610 for an Aberdeen Angus cross bull from Laura Bell and averaged £339/head, while heifers averaged £409/head.

With the store season coming to an end, hogg numbers at Longtown were fewer on Tuesday and sold to £108/head for Texels from Clonhie, while feeding ewes continued to meet with demand with Heddon View topping the market for the first time at £144 for a strong Cheviot mule.

Ewes and lambs were sharper on the week and peaked at £155 for a Blue Texel ewe with Dutch Spotted lambs at foot from Kerricks, and a pen of Texel hoggs with cross lambs at foot sold to £152 for Swinside.

Calves and stirks at Ayr on Tuesday were sharper on the week and sold to £620 for a British Blue cross heifer from Low Barledziew with bull calves selling to £610 for a Kaimhill Limousin and a Limousin cross from Meadowbank. Stirks peaked at £1,190 for a Simmental bullock from Pinclanty and heifers sold to £1,110 for a British Blue from Garrickhill.