Winnipeg, MB (Rural Roots Canada) — The Canadian Agricultural Safety Association (CASA) has launched a new Emergency Preparedness Hub aimed at helping farmers prepare for, respond to and recover from emergencies.
Sandra Miller, CASA’s Executive Director, says that emergency risks range from natural disasters to human-caused incidents, which are becoming more frequent and unpredictable. All of these situations can seriously impact livestock and crops.
“Canadian farms are workplaces, homes, and the backbone of our food supply chain, which is why emergency preparedness on farms isn’t an option; it’s essential,” says Miller.
The hub is designed to help farmers proactively plan for emergencies. Miller says CASA regularly hears from farmers who have lived through emergencies, and the goal is to help Canadian farmers avoid going through the same level of loss in any way possible.
“CASA wants to see more farms with clear, practiced plans, stronger connections between producers and emergency responders, and ultimately fewer severe outcomes when incidents do happen,” says Miller.
READ MORE: AgSafe Alberta Launches Farmer Care Level 4: Emergency Preparedness
Information on emergency preparedness in agriculture is already available, but it can be hard to find or apply in real-world situations.
Miller says that the idea behind this Emergency Preparedness Hub was not to create something new but to make the trusted resources which are already out there more easily accessible and usable. She believes that this hub was a necessity for the agricultural community due to many farms being in isolated areas and producers being responsible for their own safety systems.
The Emergency Preparedness Hub contains tools developed by CASA. It also has materials from other organizations and links to provincial, national and sector-specific resources.
“Many farms don’t have formal emergency plans in place, not because they don’t care, but because the resources haven’t always been easy to find or apply,” says Miller in an email.
CASA hopes that emergency planning becomes a normal part of running a farm. They want the hub to help close the gap between available resources and those being used on farms, improving safety across the agricultural community.
For more information, visit the CASA website.
