Center for Dairy Farm Safety Receives OSHA Grant

Sept. 24, 2012--The Center for Dairy Farm Safety (CDFS) has been awarded a $127,000 OSHA grant through the Susan Harwood Training Grant Program. This is the second year the CDFS has been awarded this grant.   

During the first year of the grant the CDFS was established with collaboration between UWRF and UW-Extension. A comprehensive employer level dairy farm safety training program was designed, and is currently being offered to dairy producers throughout Wisconsin in an effort to assist in developing an effective safety and health program for their operation. All of the materials were reviewed and approved by OSHA.   

The second year of the program will build on those foundational safety program elements by designing safety training materials to be used by dairy producers for their employees.  The target audience is young workers, minority workers, and non-English speaking/limited English proficiency or non-literate/low literacy workers. Training topics will include, animal handling, hazard communication, personal protection equipment, and hazard identification/risk assessment. Training and materials will be available in English and Spanish. The CDFS will be using a variety of methods to reach the producers and the employees; besides offering in-person trainings they will also offer programming through computer-based training and webinars.   

"The opportunity to impact dairy safety is such an honor for this important industry in our state," said Connie Smith, director of risk management at UWRF and program director of the CDFS. "We want to be sensitive to what this industry needs and keep current on trends in dairy safety so we can be a valuable resource for producers." 

Through the CDFS, Andrea Nthole will continue in her capacity as outreach specialist.  Nthole holds a bachelor of science degree in agriculture education from UWRF and a master's degree in agriculture education from the University of Minnesota. Prior to joining the CDFS, Nthole taught high school vocational agriculture for more than 20 years in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and internationally.    

For more information on the CDFS, visit www.uwrf.edu/CenterForDairyFarmSafety, or contact Smith at 715-425-3344 or connie.smith@uwrf.edu.

Photo: Andrea Nthole, outreach specialist in the Center for Dairy Farm Safety.