DEATHS on Victorian farms spiked last year after two years of relatively few fatalities.

Victoria recorded eight farm deaths in 2009, up from three in 2008 and one in 2007.

The total work fatalities in Victoria last year was 30, up from 21 in 2008 and 22 in 2007.

WorkSafe spokesman Mr Birt said the statistics showed farm deaths were out of proportion with the populations in rural centres.

He said the country statistics more broadly were "very much out of kilter with the metro area."

"Fifty-nine people have died on Victorian farms in the past nine years and there were eight deaths in 2009.

"This is moving us back to the numbers being reached a decade ago."

The number of farm deaths spiked in 2004 with 13 fatalities and dropped to zero a year later.

The fatalities recorded by WorkSafe do not include those on hobby farms or deaths that occur on farms that are not work-related.

Mr Birt said of the eight agriculture deaths last year, all were male and half were more than 60 years of age.

"Three were in their 70s or 80s and most were working alone," Mr Birt said.

"The demographics of farming is changing and farmers are getting older."

He said farmers might be more vulnerable if they were carrying a few injuries, had bad habits and weren't as nimble as they were when they were younger.

Mr Birt said poor practices, complacency and maintenance of machinery were all issues.

He said tractors were involved in most of the deaths last year.

"Not applying the brakes, faulty brakes or starting the tractor while in gear are common features of tractor deaths," Mr Birt said.

He said a person was killed while mowing grass with a tractor and another killed when a tip-truck hit powerlines and a person standing nearby was killed.

"Power lines tend not to get lower, but new machinery is often bigger than what it replaced," Mr Birt said.

Mr Birt said the figures were conservative and did not show the many serious incidents reported to WorkSafe each year in which people were badly hurt.