Aberdeenshire potato farm fined £20,000 for worker’s death

An Aberdeenshire farm has been fined £20,000 after a worker died when his clothing became entangled in machinery.

Adam Currie, 24, was sorting potatoes on a conveyor belt at Mains of Melrose Farm, near Gamrie, on the morning of 13 November 2023.

Inverness Sheriff Court heard that a colleague later found Mr Currie wedged under the conveyor belt, with his hood trapped in the roller mechanism.

Police officers and fellow workers gave him CPR before he was flown to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary. Mr Currie died in hospital three days later.

Melrose Farms, a family-owned potato farming partnership, was fined after pleading guilty to a breach of health and safety legislation.

The court heard that one of Mr Currie’s colleagues was alerted to the incident after spotting potatoes piled up on the conveyor belt.

A Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation found that the farm’s workers had received training in the operation of the machinery, and also the systems of work to be followed.

Risk assessments were in place for routine tasks and employees knew how to stop the machines.

Investigators were unable to determine why Mr Currie had gone below the conveyor.

But they did find that the farm failed to take effective measures to prevent anyone coming into contact with dangerous moving parts of the machinery.

Following the incident, the farm fitted the machine’s rollers with fixed guards and fitted mesh guards to prevent access to the underside of the conveyer.

The court was told that a number of Mr Currie’s organs were donated so they could be used to save lives.

Speaking after the sentencing, Debbie Carroll, of the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, said the risks associated with the machinery were “well documented”.

She said: “The death of Adam Currie is a tragic loss for his family and friends and they have my deepest sympathies.”