GRAIN silo awareness, quad bike safety and safe play zones were some of the elements in the winning entry to the inaugural Primary Industries Health and Safety Partnership (PIHS) Farm Safety Student Video Competition.
Kimba Area School in South Australia used local members of the community and some enthusiastic young talent to win the competition, picking up $1000 for its effort.
The video showed young teenagers encountering potential hazards on a property and reinforced the message of being vigilant to them.
Three Nowra High School (NSW) year 10 students were awarded the runner-up prize of $500.
Their video saw new, safety-themed lyrics put to the popular song, Uptown Funk, with plenty of dancing and livestock appearances to boot.
The competition was open to high school students in an effort to encourage the younger generation to discuss the importance of farm safety, in a way that resonated with their peers.
PIHSP chairman, Patrick Murphy, said the winning entry, provided useful on-farm information about agricultural safety.
“The judging panel enjoyed the fact that so many different aspects of farm safety were acknowledged, from farm machinery to grain storage to quad bike safety,” Mr Murphy said.
“It was wonderful to see statistics referenced, as well as the number of students, teachers and parents who got involved in the development of this entry.”
Mr Murphy said the runner-up entry was entertaining, with a strong message.
“This entry also touched on a wide range of farm safety aspects and the creativity and originality impressed the judges,” Mr Murphy said.
PIHSP's goal is to improve the health and safety of workers and their families in farming industries across Australia and is funded by the Cotton, Grains and Rural Industries Research and Development Corporations, as well as the Australian Meat Processor Corporation and Meat & Livestock Australia.
Mr Murphy said it was pleasing to see so many group entries in this category, where school and community groups planned and developed the content for their videos.
“This was the core purpose of the competition, to encourage young people to talk about farm safety and discuss it with each other," he said.
The competition was also open to tertiary students but no formal entries were received.