Agriculture professor discusses statewide efforts to help farmers, prevent suicides on ‘MTSU On the Record’

A new governmental panel designed to help farmers survive the stressors unique to their profession was the subject of a recent “MTSU On the Record” radio program.

Dr. Chaney Mosley

Host Gina Logue’s interview with Dr. Chaney Mosley, an assistant professor of agricultural education in MTSU’s School of Agriculture, first aired Nov. 27 on WMOT-FM Roots Radio 89.5 and online at www.wmot.org. You can listen to their conversation above.

Mosley is one of 17 members of the new Farmers Suicide Prevention Task Force, which the Tennessee Suicide Prevention Network created in partnership with the Tennessee Department of Agriculture.

The new panel is studying the issue of suicide among farmers in Tennessee. Some of the organizations represented on the task force include agriculture extension services, Farm Bureau, and producers of pork, beef, poultry, soybeans and dairy products.

The task force’s website notes that “farming can be stressful in the best of times. Financial worries, unpredictable weather, plant pests, livestock diseases, and isolation all contribute to farmers’ anxiety. Severe depression and suicidal thoughts can be common … (and) many of the factors that affect agricultural production are largely beyond the control of the producer.”

“The job of the farmer is a heavy lift, and with such a tremendous responsibility comes significant amounts of stress,” Mosley said. “There are not too many industries … where the livelihood of the individual — in this case, the farmer — is dependent upon the weather.”

To hear previous “MTSU On the Record” programs, visit the searchable “Audio Clips” archives at www.mtsunews.com.

For more information about “MTSU On the Record,” contact Logue at 615-898-5081 or WMOT-FM at 615-898-2800.

A student loads rolls of hay onto a waiting trailer at the MTSU Farm to be used to feed livestock at the facility in this file photo. An MTSU School of Agriculture professor is working with a state task force to find solutions for the near-countless stressors — financial concerns, uncooperative weather, work schedules, animal health, family and community demands, equipment needs and more — farmers face on a daily basis that can lead some to consider, or commit, suicide. (MTSU file photo by Andy Heidt)

A student loads rolls of hay onto a waiting trailer at the MTSU Farm to be used to feed livestock at the facility in this file photo. MTSU School of Agriculture professor Chaney Mosley is working with a state task force to find solutions for the near-countless stressors — financial worries, unpredictable weather, 24/7 work schedules, isolation, livestock health, family and community demands, equipment needs and more — farmers face on a daily basis that can lead some to consider, and commit, suicide. Mosley will discuss Tennessee’s new Farmers Suicide Prevention Task Force on “MTSU On the Record” Nov. 27 and Dec. 2 on WMOT-FM Roots Radio 89.5. (MTSU file photo by Andy Heidt)