Zoonoses and Injuries in Karacabey Livestock Farming

Why is livestock farming safety in Karacabey a separate topic?

As well as tomatoes for paste and maize, the Karacabey Plain is known for dairy farming. Dairy product factories operate in the district; the historic stud farm, where horses have been bred since the Ottoman period, now carries out crop production and livestock farming as the TİGEM Karacabey Agricultural Enterprise. The barns around the plain, the milk collection arrangements and feed production create a risk profile completely different from TEKNOSAB on the district's industrial side.

Livestock farming safety is often thought to be outside the legislation as "farm work". Yet Art. 2 of Law No. 6331 on Occupational Health and Safety applies to all public and private work and workplaces regardless of their field of activity. Those excluded include people producing in their own name and on their own account without employing staff; even a dairy farm with a single employee is covered. Barn worker risks and priority measures can be summarised as follows:

Cattle injuries: kicks, crushing, attacks

A cow's kick or a heifer pinning an employee against a pen wall are the most common serious injury scenarios in livestock farming. Injuries usually happen during the following tasks: assisting births, hoof care, vaccination and treatment, moving animals between pens, and loading. To reduce the risk of cattle injury:

1. Use restraint equipment: Hoof care, examination and treatment are done in a restraint device (crush or locking yoke).
2. Leave an escape passage: Pens should have a man passage wide enough for the employee to get out quickly but too narrow for the animal to pass.
3. No one enters a bull pen alone: Rules for entering bull pens and pens with cows that have just calved should be written down, and the employee should not enter without a second person present.
4. Know the animal's field of vision: There is a blind spot directly behind the animal; approach from the side and make your presence heard. Sudden movements and shouting unsettle the herd.
5. Plan the moving route: The route animals take from one pen to another is arranged so that it does not trap the employee in a corner.
6. Keep floors clean: Manure-covered and wet floors increase the risk of crushing for an employee who slips next to an animal.

Employees who are new and have no experience working with animals should be given separate practical training on these risks. If seasonal or migrant workers are employed, see our article on OHS for seasonal agricultural workers for language and training arrangements.

Brucellosis and other zoonoses

Brucellosis is the best-known example in dairy farming of a disease passing from animals to humans. The bacterium is found in the abortion and birth material (placenta, foetal membranes, birth fluids), blood and milk of infected animals. Transmission usually occurs through contact of these materials with bare hands or a cut in the skin, through the eyes and mouth, or by consuming unpasteurised milk and dairy products. The disease presents with undulating fever, night sweats, fatigue and joint pain; when diagnosed late, it can last a long time.

The Regulation on the Prevention of Risks of Exposure to Biological Agents lists "work with animals and/or products of animal origin" and "work in agriculture" among activities where exposure to biological agents may occur. Brucella species are among the Group 3 agents in this regulation. Under the regulation, the employer takes the following measures in this work (Art. 10):

• Prevents eating and drinking in areas where there is a risk of contamination.
• Provides suitable protective clothing.
• Provides washing and toilet facilities and cleaning materials, including skin antiseptics.
• Ensures contaminated work clothing is removed before leaving the work area, kept in a separate place and cleaned.

The cost of these measures may not be passed on to employees. When assisting births, use arm-length disposable gloves, face protection against splashes and a waterproof apron; do not handle placentas and aborted foetuses with bare hands, and dispose of them safely. Set a clear rule that employees do not drink raw milk. If abortion or disease is suspected in animals, manage the process with a veterinarian.

Other zoonoses that may be encountered in the barn include Q fever, fungal infections transmitted from animals, leptospirosis and tetanus. The list of occupational diseases also has a separate heading for diseases transmitted from animals to humans, together with animal care and veterinary work; for details, see our articles on the list of occupational diseases and occupational infections.

Manure pit and channel gases

Manure pits, liquid manure channels and enclosed manure stores are a confined space risk that can cause multiple deaths in livestock farming. As manure decomposes, hydrogen sulphide, ammonia, methane and carbon dioxide form. The most dangerous moment is when the pit is agitated or emptied: hydrogen sulphide trapped under the liquid can be released all at once.

The occupational exposure limit values in Annex 1 of the Regulation on Health and Safety Measures in Work with Chemical Agents:

At low concentrations hydrogen sulphide can be noticed by its rotten egg smell; at high concentrations it paralyses the sense of smell. The thought "no smell, so it's safe" is therefore deadly. Methane is flammable; carbon dioxide displaces oxygen.

The covers of pits and channels should be sound and their openings surrounded by guardrails; falls and drowning are also risks in the same area.

The milking parlour and milk room

The milking parlour is the area of a livestock business where the most work is done and the most equipment is found:

• Electricity: Wet floors, water spraying and a metal milking pit all come together. Vacuum pumps, milk pumps, the cooling tank and lighting circuits must be earthed and protected by a residual current device. Panels and sockets must be protected from water splashes. See earthing and residual current devices.
• Ergonomics: The milker repeatedly raises their arms to shoulder height throughout the shift. If the depth of the milking pit does not suit the employees' height, shoulder and back complaints increase; an adjustable platform or suitable pit depth is considered.
• Kicks: A restless animal may kick during milking; the position of the arms and face while attaching the unit is taught in training.
• Chemicals: Caustic and acid solutions are used to clean the milking system and milk tank, and irritant products for teat disinfection. Gloves and eye protection suitable for the SDS are needed; for the risks of cleaning systems, see our article on CIP cleaning in dairy plants.
• Noise: If the vacuum pump is not in a separate room, the noise level in the milking parlour is assessed.

For PTO shaft and roll-over risks with feed mixer wagons and tractors, our article on tractor roll-overs and PTO shafts should be applied together with the rule that tractors must not get too close to the edge of silage clamps.

Health surveillance, training and records

In livestock businesses, the workplace physician's role is decisive in managing infection risk:

1. Pre-employment examination: The employee's general health, tetanus vaccination status and any immunosuppressive conditions are assessed.
2. Information: Employees are told the symptoms of brucellosis and taught that, if they have a feverish illness, they must tell the doctor they work with animals.
3. Periodic examination: The frequency is set according to the workplace's hazard class; the physician may shorten the interval according to the risk.
4. Suspected case: If an infection linked to contact with animals is suspected, other employees with similar exposure are also placed under surveillance and the risk is reassessed (Biological Agents Regulation Art. 16/4).
5. Records: A list of employees exposed to Group 3 agents is kept together with records of the work done and exposure, and retained for at least 15 years after exposure ends (Art. 13); for persistent or long-incubation infections this period is 40 years.

We plan the necessary tests and vaccinations with authorised healthcare providers. In its Karacabey OSGB service, Bursa Sistemer OSGB covers livestock businesses and dairy factories around the plain on the same visit route. For risk assessment and site monitoring, see our OHS specialist page; for health surveillance, our workplace physician page; and for other links in the food chain, our food sector page.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is a family farm covered by Law No. 6331?

Those producing only in their own name and on their own account without employing staff are excluded. If even a single employee is employed, the business is covered; obligations for risk assessment, health surveillance and training arise.

How is brucellosis transmitted in the barn?

The most common route is unprotected contact with the abortion and birth material, blood or milk of an infected animal. Unpasteurised milk and dairy products are also a source of transmission. Using arm-length gloves and face protection when assisting births, disposing of waste safely and not drinking raw milk are the basic measures.

Which gases are dangerous in a manure pit?

Hydrogen sulphide, ammonia, methane and carbon dioxide. The 8-hour limit value for hydrogen sulphide is 5 ppm and the 15-minute limit value is 10 ppm. This gas can be released suddenly when the pit is agitated; no entry should be made without testing and a work permit.

Do barn workers need a vocational training certificate?

Under the heading of agriculture and livestock, the Annex 1 list of the vocational training regulation includes aquaculture work and the use of agricultural pesticides; barn work is not listed separately. This does not mean training is unnecessary: OHS training and practical training specific to working with animals must be given to every employee.