Melissa Villeneuve – Lethbridge Herald
Farm families learned their health should be as well-maintained as their tractors through the Sustainable Farm Families pilot program this past month.
SFF is an injury prevention and wellness program providing farmers, their families and employees with tools and techniques to manage their health and wellbeing.
The free two-day workshop, conducted by the Farm Safety Centre in Raymond, covered personal health assessments, action-planning and topics such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, nutrition, stress and farm safety.
The pilot program was funded through Alberta Agriculture & Rural Development.
SFF was first developed for the farming industry in Australia 11 years ago by a group of nurses who realized many of their patients had injuries or health problems deemed to be preventable. The perception is farm workers are outside doing physical activity all the time so they should be healthier, but Australian studies found they aren’t, said Laura Nelson, executive director of Farm Safety Centre.
Sustainable Farm Families™ – International programs
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