Officials Look the Other Way
(Continued from Page 4)
indicator of egg production and egg prices,
has been climbing at a record level each
month since January, Lancaster Farming
has still not received any material from
either the state or federal governments to
indicate that the combined impact of these
monthly figures points to the biggest egg
bust in the history of the egg industry.
To judge by government sources, it’s
business as usual.
Fortunately, some of the leading egg
producers and allied industrymen and their
organizations, who have their lives and
fortunes wrapped up in the fate of the egg
industry, hate not been sleeping, although
their call to action is late in the game.
(See page 1.)
But considering that they are attempt
ing what has never been done before, per
haps it is surprising they have made so
much progress.
If their effort succeeds, and the fate and
fortune of many egg producers depends on
it, then egg producers should insist in the
future that they never again be allowed to
stumble unawares into a situation similar to
the one today.
If the go\ eminent will not assume the
responsibility of providing adequate and
reliable information to producers, the pro
ducers should insist that somebody else do
it.
They should either get some of the or
ganizations now working to head off the
bast to do the job or create new avenues.
NO SERVICE CHARGES
Personal
Checking Accounts
with $lOO Average Balance
THIS SERVICE ALSO AVAILABLE TO SERVICE CLUBS,
CHURCH .GROUPS & OTHER NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATIONS
Commonwealth
National Bank
Lancaster - Centerville - Lancaster East - Landisville
Lititz - Manheim Township - Millersville - Rohrerstovm
Without adequate information widely
distributed, we’ll continue to ha\e booms
and busts. Without adequate information, Frank Uurner of Urner Barry national concern about an egg
we'll have farmers in the future doing as Publications. N. Y. will make a bust, the accuracy and reliability
many of them are doing today: investing presentation on “National Com- of the Urner Barry price system
fortunes in the egg market in the summer puterized Egg Information Sys- has come under attack from
on the basis of last winter’s egg boom, tern” at 2 p.m. Wednesday, July 1 some egg industry oflicials.
at Room 309 Pennsylvania De- At the same time, Urner Barry
We are informed that many local farm- partment of Agriculture Build- has made changes and modern
ers even now refuse to recognize the possi- i n S. Cameron Street, near the i 7e d, including adoption of a new
ble devastating consequences of the egg Farm Show Building. Hams- computer system, to stop the
market in the next six to eighteen months l* ur S- criticism and make its weekly
and insist on speaking in terms of the for- . Lancaster Farming pioneered figures more acceptable to the
tunes that were made in eggs last winter, if 1 this are . a in carrying the Urner industry.
Those fortunes last wmte? uere made The J “V T” “
the seivice appears each week in e gg marketers and producers,
mostly by egg produeers who survued the the market section. will include an explanation of
bust of 1967, andby no means did all pro- In iecent months, in the wake the Urner Barry system and its
ducers survive 1967. It is only half in jest 0 { sharp egg pi ice changes, both modernization steps, it was re
that industrymen say, ‘I know theres lots U p anc j down, and the growing ported,
of money in eggs, because I know so many
• a 6 put 10ts of “ n and ne e Foundation Conducting Drive
Make no mistake about it. last winter’s To Cut $123,000 Center Debt
egg market is more truly gone than is last “ ' ,
winter’s snow. The Faim and Home Founda- aie underway for an implement
tion is in the midst of a duve to and general sale at the Center in
t-i , . , , reduce the $123,000 moitgage
Egg producers who want to remain pro- rem 0n the Faim a “ d
ducers next winter had better catch up fast. u ome centei
They had better forget last winter s egg The structuie was built about
market and invest in today’s egg market thiee years ago at a cost of al
and tomorrow’s egg market. most half a million dollais
. One event to laise funds, the
And one investment they had better Farm and Home Center Labor
make is the time and money it takes to Day, featuring a slave auction
develop the know-how and informational July 30, was announced last
system to avoid the mistakes and excesses week
of 1970. In addition, piehminary plans
on
A
Member FDIC
Lancaster Farming. Saturday, June 20,1970—!l
Urner Barry to Explain
Its Computer Egg System
Maich 1971 A regular auction
sale is planned at which farm
and other items will be sold on
commission Donated items will
also be accepted
Other possible fund-raising
events also are under considera
tion
At a Foundation board meeting
tlus week at the Center, Larry
Skromme, Foundation vice chair
man, received board approval to
send a letter to all contributors
of SlOO or more to inform them
of their status in relation to a
plaque which will be erected at
the entrance to the center.
The letter is to make sure
the Foundation has the correct
name and the proper category
of donation for each donor It
was also reported that donors
can still change their category
Iby making further contnbu.-
! tions.
Skromme said a temporary
plaque will be established m
the lobby, then the permanent
plaque. The temporary plaque
will also provide for coirections
or changes
• We Introduce
(Continued from Page 1)
been set up by the UEP staff
with compute! ized headquarters
m Atlanta
Delano believes that the value
of the Urner Barry price quote
has been largely destroyed by
changes m the marketplace, so
that Urnei Barry quote does not
represent a firm market price.
Delano explains that chain
stores used to pay 10 to 12 cents
over the wholesale price for eggs
and the egg producer received
the wholesale price for his pro
duct.
But now, leading chain stores
pay 6 to 7 cents over wholesale
and producers get 3 to 6 cents
under wholesale
But since the extent of the
price under wholesale varies
widely and since the producer
has no sound way of knowing
what he should accept below the
wholesale price, there really isn’t
a firm market for the producer,
according to Delano.
He said the new UEP price
would enable the egg industry to
get back to a firm, non-dis
counted price Then everybody
would know where they stand
and the producer would have the
option of moving from one area
to the next if he couldn’t get the
quoted price in one area.
Since, according to the UEP,
the new market adequately re
flects the egg market demand, as
gathered from all over the coun
try and computerized in Atlanta,
the producer should always be
able to obtain the UEP price
quote in the market
Delano said he met with egg
packers in Harnsbuig Friday
and “we’ie hoping to get quite a