Today at the Great Yorkshire Show, the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), Emma Reynolds, and her ministerial team visited the RABI stand to experience a hands-on demonstration of FarmersAid, a pioneering new critical care app designed to save lives on British farms.
The visit comes at a crucial time for agricultural safety. Agriculture remains the UK’s deadliest industry, with a fatal injury rate 22x higher than average.
FarmersAid is a long-term initiative from RABI – the Farmers Charity, designed to strengthen emergency preparedness across the farming community. The FarmersAid app, developed alongside leading experts in rural emergency medicine, is designed to guide users step-by-step through the critical moments following a major trauma incident.
During the visit, the DEFRA team experienced firsthand what it takes to respond to a farm emergency. Secretary of State Emma Reynolds took on RABI’s Tourniquet Challenge to test how quickly she could control a catastrophic bleed. Meanwhile, Farming Minister Stephen Morgan undertook the First Response Test, an interactive demonstration showing how FarmersAid provides step-by-step guidance to walk users through the critical, high-pressure moments immediately following a serious on-farm accident.
Alicia Chivers, Chief Executive of RABI, said:
It was a pleasure to welcome the Secretary of State, the Farming Minister, the Permanent Secretary and the wider DEFRA team to the RABI stand at the Great Yorkshire Show.
These conversations are incredibly important. They give us the opportunity to share what we’re hearing directly from farming people through the practical, financial and emotional support we provide every day, alongside our growing programme of wellbeing research. By bringing together frontline experience with evidence and insight, we can help shape conversations about how to improve the health, wellbeing and safety of farming people.
We’re grateful to the DEFRA team for taking the time to meet with us, and we look forward to continuing to work together to improve outcomes for farming communities.
The FarmersAid app is free and available to download now on the Apple App Store and Google Play.
