
From Soil to Health: In Search of Occupational Safety in Agriculture and Livestock
Chapter from the book:
Koçali,
K.
(ed.)
2025.
Social Policy Reviews of Occupational Health and Safety.
Synopsis
The agriculture and livestock sector, which provides basic food needs to people, is becoming one of the most important sectors with the rapidly increasing world population. In order to ensure sustainability in these sectors, employees need to benefit from occupational health and safety services and working conditions need to be improved. According to the International Labor Organization (ILO) data, in the agricultural sector, which employs approximately 1.3 billion people, 170,000 people lose their lives every year, many employees are exposed to various occupational accidents and face occupational diseases. The main causes of fatal occupational accidents in the agricultural sector include vehicle accidents, crashes, rollovers, falls from heights, being hit by moving, rotating or falling objects, and drowning. The livestock sector is considered to be one of the most dangerous occupations among all occupational groups. Occupational health and safety practices in this sector are of great importance due to the exposure of employees to physical, chemical, biological and ergonomic risk factors. While aggressive behavior of animals, incorrect transportation methods and inadequate hygiene conditions cause occupational accidents; Factors such as zoonotic diseases and manure gases can cause serious health problems. The agriculture and livestock sector is a strategically important area for all societies, and the number of employees employed in this sector cannot be ignored. Therefore, giving the necessary importance to these employees is a vital necessity in terms of protecting them in terms of occupational health and safety and improving their working conditions.