The following appealed in the
July issue of Broiler Industry
magazine:
The poultry indusliy must
streamline its methods of dealing
with- government and Congress
Most picssing: a icstructuimg of
its lobbying apparatus, and the
need for a broadei. moie power
ful program of icseaich and pro
motion funded by acioss-the
boanftcontnbutlons, voluntary or
compulsory, fiom industiy mem
bers. These needs aie shaping
up ag. really critical as the result
of industry intelligence reports
fronbthe power centers here.
Mesages on political teletypes
boil down to this: consumerism
as -a political force is here to
stay. The advent of consumer
concern has made the business of
dealing with government a whole
new ball game. Old rules are out
the window.
, Here are some pertinent
points: the old days, when in
dustry representatives could
meet informally with govern
ment officials and quietly resolve
their problems, aie gone. Re
spect, awe, fear—call it what you
will—for the political power of
ATTENTION DAIRYMEN:
PRO-SIL
□ Substantially Reduce Feed Costs.
□ Eliminate The Need For Any Additional
Supplement For Heifers, Dry Cows, And
For Cows Producing Less Than 40 Lbs./
Day.
□ Reduce The Level Of Supplementation
Needed To Maintain High Levels Of Pro
duction.
□ No Toxicity.
□ Developed And Tested At Michigan State
University By Professors Tal Huber And
Hugh Henderson Send For Test Re
sults,
□ Corn Silage A Balanced Ration.
Across the
Editor's Desk
consumeiism has made fedci.il
legulatois loughiM to deal with
on sensitive issues
Closer suivciilancc by a moie
sophisticated pi ess also has de
molished this old style of doing
things. Once the public press
paid scant attention to poultry
issues, because it cared little and
understood less But the emer
gence of consumerism has
spawned a whole new crop of
writers, reasonably well versed
in the more technical aspects of
industry issues, eager to expose
any development which has a
hint of intrigue. Bureaucrats
have learned this a lot faster
than some industry leaders
There aie increasing instances of
a government official getting
himself out of a sticky situation
by a deliberate “leak” to the
press. Another important point:
Ralph Nader. His flair for drama
tizing consumer issues is one of
the main reasons why industry
government dealings now pulsate
with new political sensitivity.
Everyone in government and
Congress is Nader-conscious.
The straight-from-the-shoulder
advice to poultry industry lead-
WILL...
HAS
WAS . . .
MAKES...
crs fiom thiMi friends in govern
ment is simplv this you h.id bet
ter be Nadci-conscious, loo'
To dismiss Nader as a public
ity-hungiy zealot is not only bad
tactics, it is cironeous Report
government technicians Nader
is not only light some of the time
—he is on taiget often This is
the word from Washington pros
who have been around the food
regulatory field for a long time.
Specifically, what does all this
mean to the poultry industry?
Based on advice from industry
friends in government and in
Congress, who specialize in tel
ling it bke it is, this is the rec
ommended course of action: first,
the poultry industry must re
group its scattered forces. There
are too many uncoordinated
lobbying efforts, some of them
actually woikmg at cross-pur
poses. The answer is to reorgan
ize its political action apparatus
into a single unit which can be
used to concentrate industry’s
political fiiepower in Congress.
This is a “must” if industry is
to meet this new challenge
Secondly, don’t go befoie any
WHAT IS PRO-SIL?
Pro-Sil is a liquid supplement, an easily handled
ammomated cane molasses suspension containing
minerals. When used as recommended, it eliminates
completely the inherent mineral and protein defi
ciencies of the corn plant. It makes corn silage a
complete feed for the ruminant animal.
For Fall use, orders must be taken immediately.
For details inquire
Quarryville, Pa.
Dealers
LANCASTER BONE FERTILIZER CO.
Quanyville, Pa.
ORGANIC PLANT FOOD CO.
Lancaster, Pa,
Paradise, Pa
of the rcgulaloiy agencies with a
request unless you have the facts
and figures to back it up Self
serving arguments are out' The
agencies want documentation
Because so many of these deci
sions must stand the test of pub
lic debate as nevei befote c\ci>-
body in government is scared to
death of making a miscalculation
This means stepped up indusliy
effoits in the icseaich field.
The fact that an mdustiy pro
posal is valid, and will benefit
the customer, is not enough It
will have to be backed up by a
briefcase full of data Even the
scientific community will have to
stand up and be counted. No
longer will the scientist be able
to fire his shot, and then duck
for cover to his ivory tower. He
is going to have to remain on
the scene and slug it out.
Thirdly, in instances where
critics—whether in Congress or
government obviously are on
the wrong track, industry will
have to call them on it. This
means getting the eye and ear of
the public through accelerated
public information campaigns.
It all comes down to this; con
sumerism, as a social and politi
cal force, is like a speeding
freight tram. The savvy indus
tries are hopping aboard, and are
trying to help steer it. The my
opic industry leaders are trying
to stop it by holding up their
Distributor
LAN-CHESCO CO.
AMOS EBY & CO.
Lancaster Farming. Saturday, August 22.1970
717-786-3527 after 6 P.M.
717-786-7348
717-392-4963
717-687-6091
hands; they are being flattened.
The poultiy industry must
soon choose its course.
Inserts vs Chemicals
The following itirn about
Congiessnian C’.eoige Goodlmg. a
Voik C’ountv ot ch.n (list and a
member of the Committee on
Agiiculluic in the U S House of
Repiesent.itives, appealed lecent
1> in Noithcast Agriculture
magazine
Congiessman Geoige Goodlmg
of Pennsylvania is much less
concerned about the so-called
hazards connected with agri
cultural chemicals than he is
about the worms, insects and
diseases that would take over
without the use of chemicals
Goodlmg is one of the few
farmers in Congiess He owns
and operates a 40-acre apple and
peach farm in the 19th district
of Pennsylvania. He has used
DDT since it first came on the
market.
“I’ve been soaked with the
stuff,” he says, “and I never
once suffered any ill affects from
it.” He says he can get along
without using DDT now because
there are substitutes, but he
thinks the whole issue of agri
cultural chemicals is being car
ried far beyond the realm of
common sense
The Congressman says he isn’t
getting much suppoit from his
colleagues in Congress Too
many of them are riding the
1 wave of emotion and are going
| along with the agitators who
want to outlaw all chemicals*
Goodhng cites the spread of
the Gypsy Moth in the Northeast
as an example of the problem.
,The USDA has issued a warning
, that the Gypsy Moth is becoming
i a serious threat to the hardwood
[forests of the Northeast. DDT,
[says Goodlmg, is the only pesti
cide that has been proved effec-
I tive in the war against the Gypsy
Moth No substitute, he says, has
yet been found for this particular
bug
Another pioposal which con*
cerns the Pennsylvania Congress
man is a x eorgamzation plan
which would assign responsibil
ity for agucultural chemicals to
an Envuonmental Protection
Agency Under the proposal, re
strictions of chemicals would be
taken from the juusdiction of
the US DA and placed in the
hands of the new agency.
In the fiist place, says Good
ling, we don’t need another
agency We’ve got too many al
ready
In the second place, he en
visions the new agency as being
stacked with people unfamiliar
with agucultuie and home along
on the wave of emotion
Make Travel Deductible
The Fuirow, a John Deeie pub
lication, suggests in its July-
August edition that fai mers com
bine business and pleasuie when
they take vacations and make
the travel expenses tax deduc
tible
Expenses which can be de
ducted include meals and lodg
ing, paiking and tolls, tips, tele
phone and ten cents pei mile for
auto use.
The article suggests the faimer
understand what makes the trip
deductible by consulting with
his tax man or IRS agent before
going.
To be deductible, the travel
has to be of a business nature,
enabling the farmer to learn
more about his business. This
can involve visiting other farms
or research facilities along the
way.
The deductions won’t pay for
a trip, but maybe they’ll help
make one possible.
11