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Farm Safety Audits and Reviews

A safety review is a planned walk around the farm with a notebook and fresh eyes. Done regularly, it finds problems before they become injuries.

What is a farm safety audit?

An audit is a structured look at your farm's buildings, equipment, work habits and emergency readiness. It can be as simple as a walk with a checklist or as formal as a consultant's report.

The goal is to find hazards and decide what to do about them. It is not to assign blame.

Reviews can also be done by neighbors swapping visits. A friendly outside eye often notices hazards that have become invisible through familiarity.

• Hazards in buildings and yards
• Equipment condition and guards
• Training, habits and emergency readiness

How do you plan a review?

Pick a regular time, such as the start of spring, before harvest and at the start of winter. Gather a checklist from a trusted source, such as an extension service or NIOSH, and adapt it to your operation.

Invite family members and workers, since they notice different things. Bring a notebook or phone to record what you find.

Use the same checklist each time so you can compare results from one review to the next. Adjust it when equipment or work changes.

• Choose a regular schedule
• Use a trusted checklist and adapt it
• Include workers and family
• Take photos and notes

What areas should you look at?

Walk through each area of the farm: shops, barns, grain storage, chemical storage, fuel, electrical, equipment, roads and yards, living areas and play spaces. Look at lighting, clutter, access, storage and signs.

Review equipment condition against the manufacturer's manual. Check that guards and shields are present and that maintenance is current. Specific tolerances and inspection intervals come from the manual, not from memory.

Do not forget outdoor areas. Roads, gates, ponds, ditches and fuel storage deserve attention along with the buildings.

• Look at lighting and access routes
• Check that emergency information is posted

What about people, not just places?

Habits matter as much as buildings. Ask who does which tasks, how new workers are trained, how visitors are handled and what happens if someone is working alone.

Look at fatigue, stress and workload. Long days and tight deadlines raise risk, and a good review includes honest discussion about them.

Ask workers what they find awkward or tiring about a task. Those jobs are often where shortcuts creep in.

• Ask who works alone and how they check in
• Ask how new workers and visitors are oriented

How do you turn findings into action?

Sort items into urgent, soon and later. Fix simple items right away, and make a plan with names and dates for the rest. If a hazard cannot be fixed immediately, mark it clearly and keep people away.

For serious hazards, such as grain bins and confined spaces, use official guidance and recognized training to decide the next step. Even a fix that takes ten minutes, such as clearing a walkway or replacing a worn handle, counts as progress and is worth noting in your log.

• Fix quick items today
• Assign names and dates to larger items
• Mark hazards that cannot be fixed yet
• Recheck at the next review

What records should you keep?

Keep a simple log of what you reviewed, what you found and what you changed. It shows progress, helps new people understand the farm and may be useful for insurers or agencies if they ask.

Records requirements for employers vary. Confirm what applies with OSHA, the U.S. Department of Labor and your state agency.

Photos help show the condition of a space at the time of a review. Date them and store them with your notes.

• Date every entry
• Keep records where more than one person can find them

When should you ask for outside help?

If you find hazards you do not know how to fix, or if you employ workers and are unsure about requirements, ask for help. Extension offices, OSHA's consultation programs where available and farm safety organizations can review your findings.

A review is a habit, not a test. The farms that keep doing them tend to be the ones that stay ahead of problems. Keep the review friendly, and thank everyone who takes part.

Celebrate improvements you find between reviews, and thank people who contributed ideas.

• Extension offices and OSHA consultation where available
• Farm safety organizations and insurers

Last reviewed: November 12, 2026. Written by the Farm Safety Editorial Team. See our editorial policy.