A survey by The Conversation revealed that about 81% of farmers have been victims of at least one type of farm crime, 76.8% have been victims of some crime more than two times, and 23.3% have been victims of crime over seven times. This clearly proves that most farms and farm buildings are highly likely to face a multitude of crimes if not well protected.
Farming is an essential industry that plays a pivotal role in feeding people and supporting the economies of every nation. However, these farms do not just deal with natural or environmental threats like heavy rainfall, pests, high snowfall, or scorching sun, but also from other people and predatory animals.
In this blog, we will explore how to enhance your farm’s security against several elements.
Precaution Better Than Cure: Understanding Farm Threats
Farms and farm buildings are often vast structures that house heavy machinery, expensive equipment, tools, crops, and animals. They face a vast number of threats in terms of each element. Before improving the safety of your farm, it is crucial to know the common threats that it faces.
- Trespassing
- Hunting of animals
- Breaking and entering in farm buildings, metal barns, sheds
- Livestock theft
- Theft of equipment, tools, and farm vehicles
- Damage to property or vandalism
- Fuel theft
- Robbery of farm supplies like chemicals, livestock feed, or crops
- Dumping of garbage
- Harm to livestock, cattle, or horses
As per reports, these threats pose high financial losses to farmers and ranchers, leading them to lose millions of dollars annually.
Assessing The Farm Risk
Before beginning to enhance the security of your farm or farm metal building, it is crucial to carry out a complete assessment of the risks that you are likely to encounter and their potential consequences. This will help you curate a better plan for the number of security elements you wish to add to your farm. Understanding the risks you are likely to face, environmental or human, will help you create a comprehensive plan. To assess the current security measures you have and possibly need to install on your property, you can answer the following questions:
- How easy is it for a criminal to enter your farm?
- Are your fences damaged?
- Do any unprotected access points exist on your farm or farm buildings?
- Are the hinges on your farm door properly secured?
How To Improve Your Farm’s Security?
- Security Cameras: A range of security cameras are available on the market today. They are great deterrents against threats and can help you guide unmonitored spots on the farm.
Whenever you decide to invest in CCTV cameras, you should opt for one that offers live surveillance. Through which companies identify threats in real time and notify you.
Nowadays, cameras come with built-in smart technology that enables them to differentiate between harmless motion and potential threats. Security cameras can easily be integrated with your digital devices, allowing you to check live camera feeds at any time. You should set up multiple cameras across the farm, especially in key access points and vulnerable areas, to protect your livestock.
- Security Alarms: You can also install an intrusion alarm system, which uses motion detection and sensors to identify threats on your farm and alarm you. These sensors can easily be set up and are highly effective in alarming any suspicious activity once turned on. You can integrate them in your steel barns, and after you are finished concluding your work. Turn them on for additional security of your farm equipment and tools.
- Protect Your Livestock: You cannot constrain your livestock to stay within one area. There are several times when you have to let them roam around without having the resources to offer constant security. However, there are a few things that can be done to safeguard your valuable animals.
One possible solution is to add fences across your farm property, not just to protect your animals from theft but also to ensure they do not wander around. You should also regularly monitor fencing to see if there is any damage or gaps that can compromise your animal’s safety.
Another solution is to tag your cattle, so it is easier to identify them. This will allow you to know immediately if there has been a cattle theft or injury.
- Ground-based Surveillance Radars: For farmers and ranchers who have small farms and do not wish to invest in full-fledged surveillance systems. Ground-based radars are a wonderful way to protect their storage, equipment, and farm vehicles. They can examine any building or area’s parameters. These easy-to-install, low-energy-consuming systems are also highly cost-effective.
- Invest In Security Lighting: An underestimated solution that has always proven to be highly effective is adding immense lighting on your farm. It is a strategic investment as properly lit areas often discourage criminal activities.
You should also consider investing in motion-sensor lights throughout your farm so that. In case of any movement, they light up and reveal any threats out there. Along with being an additional protective layer, adequate lighting will offer you peace of mind, preventing potential intruders from entering the area.
- Enhanced Security of Metal Barns and Farm Buildings: To enhance the protection of your barn buildings where you possibly house your farm equipment, machinery, vehicles, and livestock. You should install access control systems. You can also integrate automated smart locks that cannot be broken into.
While farm metal buildings protect your machinery from environmental damage. You should install locks on machinery or chain it to prevent robbery. Along with this, you can also install anti-theft devices and steering locks on our farm vehicles, including tractors and trailers.
- Security Guards: While this may seem extreme, farms that run a large number of operations are more susceptible to infiltration of security. One of the best measures to avoid any predatory or human invasion is to appoint security guards on major farm entries to guard and protect your crucial farm belongings.
- Fire Security to Protect Farm Vehicles: If you are housing your expensive vehicles inside. It is essential to ensure that they are also safe from fire, corrosion, and pests. It is extremely easy to safeguard them when parked within a farms metal building. As steel structures are resistant to all those elements. You should opt for such buildings to ensure heightened security for your precious equipment, tools, and vehicles.
Now that you are familiar with all the necessary steps to take to secure your farm from a wide range of threats. Do not wait for an unfortunate incident to take place to improve your farm’s security. Instead, be proactive and do it today!