Nancy Nyquist News Today

LANSING – A tractor falls on you. A horse kicks you. A cow pins you against the side of a barn. Your hand gets caught in a corn shucker. These are just s

A tractor falls on you. A horse kicks you. A cow pins you against the side of a barn. Your hand gets caught in a corn shucker. These are just some of the accidents Michigan State University researcher Laurel Morano documented in her recent study of agriculture-related injuries – and only among the most dramatic examples of the dangers farmers face every day on the job. 

In 2021, agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting accounted for 16% of the state’s workplace fatalities by industry, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

While invasive species are always threatening crops, a native pest is the biggest threat to the state’s blueberries –– the stem gall wasp. The Michigan Blueberry Commission has funded research to combat the stem gall wasp and help growers stay competitive.