New research from Massey University's College of Health suggests health promotion campaigns could have a detrimental impact on some farmers during times of stress, and that agricultural professionals, such as large animal veterinarians, farmers' organisations and rural support workers, play an important role in supporting farmers through hard times.
"When farmers are stressed they don't want to be told to look after themselves – rather they want practical help and advice, which agricultural professionals can and often do provide," Dr Nicky Stanley-Clarke from the School of Social Work said.
"I believe agricultural professionals should be included as part of an integrated approach to addressing farmer stress to ensure practical farming advice and support is provided, alongside strategies to support mental wellbeing.
"My research suggests a focus on health promotion during times of stress can further stress farmers. During the dairy crisis, media were constantly talking about farmers being stressed and the Government put in place health promotion campaigns, alongside other supports. However, being constantly told they were stressed and needing to look after themselves, was not the practical solution farmers were after."
The recently-published study focused on farming households during the 2016 New Zealand dairy crisis, where global dairy milk prices fell, impacting dairy farm profitability and viability, and taking a toll on all those living and working on New Zealand dairy farms.
