The Health and Safety Authority has said it will prosecute farmers in future if they fail to comply with safety requirements.
Nearly two-thirds of farmers have not completed a code of practice for farm safety, as they are legally required to do.
The authority says there is no excuse for such a low compliance rate as the code is the key approach to improving safety in the farming-sector.
This morning HSA Senior Inspector Pat Griffin said they are now going to end their 'softly, softly' approach to farmers and will in future prosecute farmers who do not fill in the code of practice documents.
He said it was very clear that many farmers are showing little or no regard for the Farm Safety Code of Practice, which was sent to every farmer in the country.
The Irish Farmers' Association has reacted saying it is wrong to use the threat of prosecution and that farmers would respond better to encouragement.
IFA deputy president Derek Deane said he would prefer 'a carrot rather than a stick approach'.
For a number of years, campaigns have been undertaken to cut down on the estimated 1,800 farm accidents that take place each year.
Over 30% of workplace deaths happen on the land each year, although just 6% of the working population is on farms.
