What do farmers need for suicide prevention: Considerations for a hard-to-reach population

Purpose Farmers have suicide rates much higher than the general population, with elevated mental health symptoms and high stress levels. Farmers are a hard-to-reach population due to occupational demands and a culture where conversations about mental health are often stigmatizing. This study explored ways to tailor suicide prevention strategies to unique characteristics of farmers by […]

Substantiating a crisis: Understanding farmer mental health in Iowa

In 2016, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a report indicating that rates of suicides for farmers were 84.5 per 100,000, four times higher than the general population and higher than other high-risk groups, such as military veterans. Five months later, it was retracted due to a classification error. However, the report […]

Investigating suicide in agriculture globally: A scoping review of methodological approaches and a roadmap for future research

Increased attention to suicide in agriculture has led to an increase in interventions informed in part by research on who is most likely to die from suicide, using what means, and for what reason(s). However, the limited understanding of how suicide is studied and the limited engagement in previous studies with theories raises questions about […]

Understanding the factors contributing to farmer suicide: A meta-synthesis of qualitative research

Introduction: Farming is associated with a range of ongoing occupational stressors that place farmers at an elevated risk for suicide. The increase of farmer suicide in recent years represents an important public health concern and requires an understanding of the circumstances and risk factors that contributed to a farmer’s decision to die by suicide, as well […]

Let it out: A digital communication campaign to reduce suicide and mental health stigma in Kentucky farmers

Given the disproportionately high suicide rate of farmers in Kentucky and the unique cultural needs of farmers, a coalition was created to reduce the stigma of seeking help for mental health. A targeted communications campaign was developed to provide information to farmers at risk. This paper describes the development and launch of the campaign, including […]

How Farmstrong impacts farmer behaviour, to improve wellbeing: Report prepared for Farmstrong

MAIN FINDINGS · The primary way in which Farmstrong is impacting the farmers is through repeated exposure to the key messages. · Other contributors were: o Providing communications which resonate with farmers o Farmers seeing the value in what is being communicated · The triangulation of these qualitative findings with the Monitor data provides increased […]

Suicide of farmer and farm workers amid COVID-19 in India

The purpose of the study is to examine the current scenario of farmers’ suicide in India. Farmer suicides in India refer to the national catastrophe of farmers committing suicide since the 1990s. The farmers’ suicide rate in India had  ranged between 1.4 and 1.8 per 100,000 total population, over a 10-year period through 2005, however […]

Suicide and types of agriculture: A time-series analysis in Japan

Objective In recent years, rural areas have reported higher suicide rates than urban areas worldwide. Although agricultural activity is a key characteristic of many rural areas, rurality may also have heterogeneous qualities based on the type of agriculture pursued. However, to date, no study has examined potential linkages between suicide rate and types of agriculture. […]

A comparison of farming- and non-farming-related suicides from the United States’ National Violent Deaths Reporting System, 2003–2016

Farmers are at higher risk of suicide than other occupations and the general population. The complex suicide risk factors have not been examined in a large, population-wide study across a significant time period. This observational study draws on existing data from the United States’ National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS), including 140,523 farming- or non-farming-related suicide decedents […]

An exploration of the relationship between adverse events on the farm and suicidal ideation in farmers

Background: The risk of suicide for agricultural workers in parts of the United Kingdom (UK) is almost twice the national average. Existing literature has suggested that adverse farming events, where failure is  determined by uncontrollable and unpredictable forces, may be to blame. Yet, the impact of such events on farmer suicidality has not been explicitly […]

Farmer mental health: A recovery-oriented approach to support Alberta farmers for a sustainable future

Alberta is among Canada’s most productive agricultural economies contributing approximately $9.68 billion to the provincial economy in 2020. In fact, Alberta’s agriculture industry is a key driver of economic recovery in a post-COVID world. However, farmers face a range of occupational stressors unlike individuals in any other industry: unpredictable weather, volatile markets, animal-disease outbreaks, depopulation, […]

Characteristics of suicide among farmers and ranchers: Using the CDC NVDRS 2003–2018

Background: Suicide is among the top 10 causes of premature death in the United States. This study provides details on farmer and rancher suicide decedents, including demographic information, mental health status, history of suicidal thoughts and attempts, and circumstances associated with death. Methods: Data for this study were obtained from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s […]

The role of social work in confronting the farmer suicide crisis: Best practice recommendations and a call to action

Although estimates of prevalence vary, suicide rates among farmers are high and pose an important challenge for mental health policy and practice. The lack of mental health resources in many rural communities is a significant barrier to improving farmer mental health outcomes. The current paper will review (1) current findings related to the psychosocial functioning […]

Farmer suicide in Wisconsin: A qualitative analysis

Purpose There is a need to address suicide among farmers in the United States and understand what contributes to suicide among American farmers. The purpose of this qualitative study is to analyze narrative data to uncover circumstances that were present in the lives of farmers who died by suicide. Methods This study leverages data available […]

Mental health: A priority for our farmers. Report of the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food

Recent data shows that 7% of Canadians perceive their mental health as fair or poor. Some studies indicated that farmers are more at risk of such challenges. Many witnesses told the Committee that mental health issues are prevalent in their occupation. Some even shared their own experiences in dealing with mental distress. This report identifies […]

Suicide and its prevention for ageing farmers: Final report

Deaths by suicide for farming men and women have a huge impact on the family and rural and agricultural communities in which they occur. The disproportionately high rate of farmer suicide has not declined in Australia even though as a community we have known about this problem for many years (Guiney, 2012; Judd et al., […]

Yes, U.S. farmer suicide is significantly higher than the national average

This work analyzes the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) 17-state survey and its subsequent errata on U.S. suicide rates. The CDC study, which had generated media interest on U.S. farmer suicide, was retracted following the emergence of a coding error. Although the CDC corrected and republished its survey, inconsistent claims grounded on statistical […]

Economic and climatic determinants of farmer suicide in the United States

Farming has an elevated rate of suicide in the U.S. and elsewhere. This study explores a number of hypotheses as to causal factors explaining the high farmer suicide rate, including climate change (e.g., extreme temperatures, variable precipitation) and economic factors, such as price and income volatility. The CDC nonpublic vital statistic data is utilized on […]

Time trend of suicide in Swiss male farmers and comparison with other men: A cohort study

OBJECTIVE The ongoing agricultural reforms present serious challenges for Swiss farmers. Pressure is growing with difficult economic situations and the increasing demands for environmental protection, animal welfare and food safety. The aim of this study was to determine whether the strain is associated with higher risk of suicide in farmers than in men in other […]

Suicide of a farmer amid COVID-19 in India: Perspectives on social determinants of suicidal behavior and prevention strategies

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has impacted not only physical health but also mental health and wellbeing globally. These impacts can be critically higher among marginalized individuals and populations like farmers in India. While most of them live in poor socioeconomic conditions, recent psychosocial challenges due to the COVID-19 lockdown had brought endless suffering in their […]

Suicide in rural Australia: Are farming-related suicides different?

Rural Australians experience a range of health inequities-including higher rates of suicide-when compared to the general population. This retrospective cohort study compares demographic characteristics and suicide death circumstances of farming- and non-farming-related suicides in rural Victoria with the aim of: (a) exploring the contributing factors to farming-related suicide in Australia’s largest agricultural producing state; and […]

Consequences of farmer suicide in India and action plans for stopping farmer suicides

India is an agrarian country with around 60% of its people depending directly or indirectly upon agriculture. Agriculture in India is often attributed as gambling with monsoon of its almost exclusive dependency on precipitation from monsoons. The failure of these monsoon can lead to a series of droughts lack of better prices and exploitation of […]

The burden of farmer suicide on surviving family members: A qualitative survey

The purpose of this descriptive qualitative study was to better understand the burden of farmer suicide on surviving family members. Themes included: (1) family members expressed guilt; (2) family members experienced symptoms of psychological distress; (3) family members felt attached to the land and chose to remain on the farm; (4) short-term coping mechanisms included […]