Across the Acres

Jacob Bryce

Glenwood | Pope County

Tell us about your farm Bryce Farms is a family farm located around five miles southeast of Glenwood. The farm was established by our grandparents, Ed and Valeria Bryce, who raised their family there. Our parents, Alan and Pat Bryce, took over the operation in the late 1970s and raised their family on the farm. The operation has focused primarily on row-crop production, although cattle have also been part of the farm over the years.

The farm has recently transitioned to the next generation. Daily operations are overseen by Ryan and Valerie Petersen, with additional operational and agronomic support from Chris and Beth Bryce and their family. Jenna and I, along with Joe and Lacy Bryce and our families, have helped support the farm in different ways over the years. Although the operation has evolved, family remains at the center of Bryce Farms.

What safety protocols are followed on your farm on a daily basis and what types of things have you done to your equipment to make it safer? Our primary approach to safety is to take our time and avoid rushing. When people are in a hurry or operators become overly tired, accidents can happen far too easily. Clear communication is also important. Radios are kept in the primary pieces of equipment so operators can communicate and know where others are working. This is especially valuable during planting and harvest, when several people and machines operate at once.

Most of our equipment is relatively modern and includes factory-installed safety features like guards, shields, lights, warning systems and fire extinguishers. Guards and shields are expected to remain in place and are not removed or bypassed. Routine maintenance and cleaning are also priorities, including regularly blowing accumulated dust and crop material off the combine to reduce the risk of fire.

What protocols have you set for yourself to follow when you go out on the farm to remain safe? We do not currently have a formal, written set of safety protocols, although that is something we could improve. We do have a shared understanding that safety must remain a priority, and we try to hold one another accountable. That includes wearing gloves, safety glasses and other protective equipment when appropriate; carrying a cellphone or radio; taking time to assess a situation before acting; and communicating clearly with everyone involved.

It is also important to make sure equipment is shut down and secured before anyone works on or around moving parts. Our families are important to all of us; that is a constant reminder that no job is so urgent we cannot take the time to do it safely.

What have you found to be the most hazardous aspect of your farming routine? Tell us about the closest you came to a farm accident. One of the greatest hazards in farming is working around machinery, particularly when people cannot clearly see or hear one another. Even when everyone involved has good intentions, a simple misunderstanding can become dangerous very quickly. One close call that has stayed with our family involved my dad working on a corn head in the field while our great-uncle, Gerald, was in the operator’s seat.

My dad needed help and motioned for Gerald to come assist him. Gerald misunderstood the hand signal and thought my dad was telling him to start the corn head. My dad’s hand was pulled through the stalk rolls, but fortunately, he was holding a pipe wrench that was also pulled into the rolls. The wrench stopped the corn head, and my dad escaped with a badly injured hand. It could have ended much worse.     

That experience reinforced the importance of shutting equipment down completely before working on it, stepping away from the machine before communicating with the operator and never relying solely on hand signals when intentions could be misunderstood. Farm equipment can be loud, powerful and unforgiving. Clear communication and proper shutdown procedures are important.

What advice would you give to other farmers and non-farmers to help raise awareness about the dangers of the agriculture industry? Most farmers understand that agriculture can be dangerous, but familiarity can sometimes make risks feel routine. Accidents can happen quickly, even to experienced operators. Some of the most important ways to reduce risk are to slow down, communicate clearly, avoid shortcuts, keep guards and safety equipment in place and make sure people are not operating machinery when they are overly tired. If someone is working near or repairing a machine, it should be completely shut down and secured before the work begins.

For non-farmers, it is important to be patient around farm equipment on public roads. Machinery is large, travels slowly, has limited visibility and may need to make wide turns. Giving operators additional time and space can help everyone get home safely. Farming will always involve risks, but discipline, communication and a willingness to stop when something does not feel safe can prevent many accidents.

Kate and Ben Kalthoff

Albany | Stearns County

Tell us about your farm. My wife, kids and I milk 80 cows twice a day. We farm a little over 200 acres and grow alfalfa and corn. We also raise all of our replacement heifers and grow feed for all the animals.

What safety protocols are followed on your farm on a daily basis and what types of things have you done to your equipment to make it safer? We have the kids wear yellow safety vests, especially while chopping or hauling hay. Otherwise, the kids wear bright colored shirts on days when equipment is being used. We upgraded the skid loader because we needed a larger skid that wouldn’t tip over.  This one has a door and a backup camera that is always on. We also switched to all A.I. breeding and no longer have a bull on the farm.

What protocols have you set for yourself to follow when you go out on the farm to remain safe? Some of the things we do include keeping a phone on us when we are in the field or up the silo or bins. Someone always is told when I head up the silo or something similar.

What have you found to be the most hazardous aspect of your farming routine? Tell us about the closest you came to a farm accident. I feel the power take-off is the most dangerous part of the farm right now. It’s something that is always running and used daily with mixing feed. We make sure that everyone around — family, friends and especially their children — know the dangers of the PTO.     

Years ago, I got my shirt caught in an elevator belt, and it pulled me in, but I was able to hold myself back long enough for my shirt to rip apart, and I was able to pull away. Now, I am very cautious about wearing loose clothing — and even sweatshirts with strings.

What advice would you give to other farmers and non-farmers to help raise awareness about the dangers of the agriculture industry? Be extremely cautious with equipment on the road.  Don’t rush through the day and miss something that can cause an accident; it’s not worth the extra load or rushing through the yard.

Donavon Wussow

Alexandria | Douglas County

Tell us about your farm. I farm 1,000 acres, and I have corn, soybeans, hay and some pasture I make for hay. My wife, Mary, helps on the farm. One of my brothers will help in the fall hauling grain.

What safety protocols are followed on your farm on a daily basis and what types of things have you done to your equipment to make it safer? I keep shields in place and have a rollover bar on the tractor I use to make ditches. We also have flashing lights on a lot of our equipment.

What protocols have you set for yourself to follow when you go out on the farm to remain safe? I carry my cell phone with me, because most of the time, I am by myself. I also wear glasses when I cut branches with the chainsaw, and I wear jeans that aren’t baggy.

What have you found to be the most hazardous aspect of your farming routine? Tell us about the closest you came to a farm accident. Harvesting time. That is when we are running a lot of big equipment like combines, augers and grain dryers, and those can give you trouble. I really try to maintain our equipment to the best I possibly can.

Ten years ago, in November, I backed over my brother with a combine, and he didn’t make it. He had walked a quarter mile into the field, and I have no idea why he did. I combined up to a tile and backed up and when I backed up, I backed over him. I don’t know why he was in the field; he wasn’t supposed to be there.

What advice would you give to other farmers and non-farmers to help raise awareness about the dangers of the agriculture industry? Keep on eye on everything, drive slowly, and do your best to maintain your equipment.