New ACOPs clarify health and safety responsibilities on farms

Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Hon Brooke van Velden has launched two new approved codes of practice (ACOPs) that outline practical steps farmers, growers, contractors, workers and other agriculture businesses can take to meet their health and safety responsibilities on farms.

The two ACOPs, Roles and responsibilities in agriculture and Safe farm vehicle operation, will come into effect on 1 April 2027, reflecting amendments to the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 that also come into effect from that date.

The ACOPs are being launched now to help the agriculture sector prepare for upcoming changes to health and safety law. They provide practical, sector-specific information to help farmers, growers, contractors, workers and other agriculture businesses understand and meet their duties under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015.

The ACOP for Roles and responsibilities in agriculture focuses on situations where farmers, managers, workers, contractors, suppliers and others have overlapping health and safety duties. It explains that tasks can be delegated, but legal duties cannot simply be assigned to others.

The ACOP for Safe farm vehicle operation explains what good practice looks like when using farm vehicles and attached machinery, helping reduce serious harm and supporting safer farms.

WorkSafe Chief Executive Sharon Thompson says the ACOPs are an opportunity for the agriculture sector to better understand their health and safety responsibilities and improve health and safety outcomes on farms.

“These ACOPs are not about creating new duties; they are about making existing health and safety duties clearer so people understand who needs to do what, where responsibilities overlap, and how serious risks should be managed.

“Agriculture is one of New Zealand’s highest-risk sectors, accounting for around a quarter of all work-related deaths and serious injuries while employing only 6% of New Zealand’s workforce.