Now is the time to be aware of the need to limit exposure and risks related to COVID-19 for you and everyone who lives and works on your farm.
As always, practicing biosecurity measures is critical for the safety of livestock, farm employees and the public. It is now critical to also consider ways to limit person-to-person contact, limit groups to no more than ten people and maintain social distance of six feet.
If you, someone in your family or a farm employee get sick do you have a plan including quarantine and health care measures, while still moving forward with the work that has to be done this season?
Suggested tips/resources:
- Establish a plan for no contact farm deliveries – Tip Sheet from Penn State Extension
- Establish a visitor/employee log or method of tracking which could help with contact tracing in the event of a positive case in your area.
- Limit person-to-person interactions and create more distance between workers out in the field.
- Set up handwashing/sanitization stations in accessible places.
- Establish a plan to sanitize frequently touched surfaces: doorknobs, handles, steering wheels, etc. Cornell University has created checklists to help mitigate risk and document any illness here.
- Find CDC fact sheets & posters here
- Find CDC Guidance for Employers/Businesses here
- Take steps now to develop a farm plan for this virus. Illinois Corn Growers has a handy checklist & field planning sheets here
- Check out the Penn State Extension ReadyAg Workbook here
For more information or resources visit ilfb.org/covid19.
For additional livestock related resources:
University of Illinois famdoc team Webinars: click here for links to download the presentation slides
