Cannabis is still the most common drug ''by a country mile'' found when staff are tested, farmers attending a workshop in Ashburton last week heard. She had tips for farmers about policies, detection and managing the risks of staff affected by drugs or alcohol, backed up by statistics and experience. This rose to 34% when workers were tested because employers suspected they were affected by drugs. A random drug test in Canterbury showed 5% of people failed the test, but this rose to 6.3% if a test was conducted following an accident or incident. Drugs and alcohol should be on a farm's hazard list and measures for mitigating their effects should be included in policies.

Source: Otago Daily Times June 25, 2017 06:11 UTC