How hot dry harvest will help shape plans

The early start to harvest caught many by surprise. The weeks of hot dry weather that followed without a rain break for the vast majority was just as much a surprise.

However, the two combined meant harvest 2026 was compressed into a short period and leaves some important pointers for next year’s plan, says Mia Bambury, managing director of health and safety advisers Safety Revolution.

Pre-harvest health and safety briefings had to be pulled forward and, in some cases, held before seasonal harvest help had arrived, meaning those new staff members had to be briefed separately, often when harvest had already started.

See also: Why farmers should have a health and safety emergency plan

“Using technology meant we could hold some team meetings remotely, which helped, but it’s much better if everyone is on the ground, so the preparation and timing of these, to ensure delivery of key operational and safety information is something for people to think about for next year,” says Mia.

Fire risk

Fire risk assessments need to be undertaken not only for compliance but also with practical processes in mind.

With the fire risk heightened by the intensity of the heat and length of the dry spell and people and kit moving swiftly from one field to another, enough extinguishers of the right type need to be in place, advises Mia.

Building in water bowser movements to your kit movement plans as standard means when it’s needed, it’s there, Mia adds, knowing of one fire where this had not happened. 

“Ultimately the protection of life is the priority so emergency procedures must take into account safety of the team and getting them to a safe location when fires can move so quickly in dry conditions.”

Separately, in Hampshire a combine fire spread to 30ha of crop across two fields, with about 40 firefighters in attendance and fire breaks created by farm machinery to prevent further spread. Crews and equipment from 11 stations and the service headquarters were involved.

Exhaustion risk

Understandably, the drive to get crops in as quickly as possible did not diminish, despite extended good weather forecasts. Night working became a regular thing to preserve moisture, combined with hot days.

“The intensity of the sun and heat can be very fatiguing, so people need to look out for each other and recognise when others should be taking a break,” says Mia.

“It’s important to have someone available to relieve tired workers, utilise longer periods of known good weather to manage hours and provide rest, in turn reducing risk.

“It can be a challenge because seasonal staff come to farms expecting to earn well through doing long hours so it’s a management task to plan and enforce breaks and finish times.”

Good hydration helps to prevent fatigue and electrolyte drinks replace essential minerals lost through sweat and physical activity, advises Mia.

She cautions against overconsumption of energy drinks, as too much caffeine can have the knock-on effect of preventing good sleep and means people will return to work not properly rested. 

“Not unusually, we heard of a few fatigue-related incidents like posts being clipped, machinery damage, but thankfully nothing major in our client base,” says Mia.

Kit checks

Daily kit checks not only reduce risk but recording that these have been done means the compliance trail is in place should anything happen.

This includes checking trailers and loads are secure, lights and flashing beacons are operating, braking systems are fully functional, tyres are in good condition as well as blowing down combines and other kit such as balers, says Mia.

Communications

Good communication helps in the first place, with correct accessible maps, good training and clear instructions, with extra care taken with workers not familiar with the farm. However, once staff are in the field or on the road, poor signal makes things difficult on many holdings.

Solutions include a subscription to satellite broadband through Starlink, for example. Alternatively, dual sim phones can switch between networks when one signal is poor, or multi-network smart sims automatically look for the strongest signal at any location. 

“Signal has always been a challenge but it is so critical for lone working, emergency procedures and for technological systems to work now, and we have quite a few people looking to Starlink in the most remote areas,” says Mia.

Insurance issues

Improved fire prevention measures mean that Nigel Wellings, founder and chairman of Acres Insurance Brokers, has seen no more combine fire claims than usual, although there were more field fires, he says.

With so many fires last summer, fire services were stretched and so sometimes took longer to arrive than might otherwise have been the case, so this needs to be taken into account in risk assessments and emergency plans, Nigel advises.

Farmers who have chosen business interruption insurance should be covered for crop losses from field fires, or this may be included in their standard cover, he says.

“The air flows on the latest combine models are much better and not so much of a dust trap, as they used to be. However, these type 4, 5 and 6 engines operate at such high temperatures that this can be an issue.”

There is going to have to be more investment in grain cooling systems in future, he says. “And we really need to think about whether electricity is really the thing to be powering this type of kit on farms.”

The Highlands Farm fire in Essex (see panel – Fertiliser storage warning) should act as an alert for farms of all types to consider where and how flammable materials are stored, whether fuel, fertiliser or anything else, says Nigel. This means not only the type of building used, its proximity to other buildings and materials but to fields with potential crops at fire risk.

Converted buildings and commercial lets are another area that may need more attention from a fire risk perspective – landlords need to know what is really going on in those buildings.