VOL 18 No. 2 James Widders and Howard Brubaker, technicians at Penn State's Southeastern Court Upsets Milk Board Price Hike Dairymen here and across the. state were stung by a Com monwealth Court decision Thursday to revote a state order granting dairy farmers a two cent-a-quart price hike for milk. Inter-State Milk Producers’ Dr. Edward Honan, said the action came as no surprise to him. He had hoped, however, that in declaring the milk board’s action illegal, the court would have tried to figure out some way to save the price increase for dairymen. “I think this is just one more move by the administration to get rid of the milk marketing board,” Honan told LANCASTER FARMING on Friday morning. “Inter-State and other milk producer coops had asked chairman Harry Kapleau to open up his hearings action the board might take would be legal and binding. His refusal to do so, demonstrates, at least to me, his attempts to undermine the board. Now he’s got dealers and producers mad at each other, and I don’t think that’s going to do the milk industry any good at all.” William Deisley, president of Moore Dairies, said that as far as he’s concerned, his company has increased prices to customers and payments to farmers. They are going to stick with those increases. Deisley is also head of the Lancaster County Milk Dealers Association. While he said he couldn’t speak for other mem bers of the association, Deisley did say that he felt any move by any company to take back the increases would be “stupid”. Deisley also accused the Shapp administration of playing politics with the milk market at the ex pense of dealers and farmers throughout the state. “Farmers needed the price increase the courts have taken away from them,” Deisley said. “And dealers needed the extra money to pay (hat increase. We’re going to continue paying our producers the 92-cents a hundred increase, and we’re going to keep the retail prices up. I don’t hope anybody goes down in price, because that will just hurt the entire industry.” The 7-0 decision said the Milk Marketing Board “illegally prohibited” milk dealers and consumers from presenting testimony at a hearing on the proposed increase. The board, accused of a “severe abuse of discretion” was ordered to hold further hearings to get consumer apd dealer viewpoints. The Pennsylvania Association of Milk Dealers filed the court action against the board’s March 8 action. The boost was passed on to consumers in a few areas, an association spokesman said, but he called the overall effect Martin Wins Editor of the Year Award Gary Martin, former farm editor of the Lancaster In telligencer Journal, received a Farm Editor of the Year award on Monday afternoon in Washington, D.C., during the annual i... eting of the Newspaper Farm Editors of America. Presenting the award was Rex B. Conn, farm editor for the Cedar Rapids (Iowa) Gazette, and a past president of the NFEA. The award consisted of a plaque and a check for $lOO. Martin competed with other farm editors from across the country for the award. He won on the strength of a series of articles dealing with milk production and marketing. A few weeks ago, Martin left the newspaper to become a public relations writer for Sperry New Holland, a local manufacturer of farm equipment. Lancaster Farming, Saturday, April 21.1973 Field Research Laboratory, are well into their 1973 program for tobacco research. spotty. Competitive pressure and the pending court action kept most retail prices unchanged. The spokesman said he ex pected milk prices to continue unchanged despite the ruling. He noted that dealers might pass back the two-cent hike to farmers as a bonus rather than reduce consumer prices in those areas where they were raised. Harry Kapleau, chairman of the Milk Board, said, however, “A good number of dealers have increased their home delivereu prices.” Jfe said he did not have exact figures but said home deliveries were boosted in/ Harrisburg, Pittsburgh, York, Lancaster, Scranton, Wilkes-' Barre and Reading. In-store prices increased in a few areas but not as many as (Continued On Page 5) Gary G. Martin, right, is shown Monday as he received a Newspaper Farm Editor of the Year award. With him as he received the award from Rex Conn, of the Cedar Rapids lowa Gazette, was his wife, Elsa. A Look At The Research Farm If a commercial crop grows in Lancaster County, chances are very good that it’s being studied at the Southeastern Field Research Laboratory near Landisville. The laboratory is actually an 88-acre farm owned by Penn State, and operated by John Yocum. Yocum holds the title of assistant professor of agronomy on the Penn State faculty. He has BS and MS degrees in agronomy from that institution and he’s held his present post 'since 1961. One recent morning, he chatted with LANCASTER FARMING about the work at the farm and about the farm itself. “Research has been going on in Lancaster County since the 1890’5,” Yocum said, “but the first official laboratory was started in 1902. That was in Ephrata, and they did tobacco research ” In 1930, research activities were moved to a farm along Lancaster’s Roseville Road where they remained until 1954. From 1954 until 1956, the work' was done in Landisville on a site now occupied by a community swimming pool. And in 1956, operations were moved to the present location. Tobacco was about the only crop studied here until 1954, and there is still a lot of work being done with tobacco. Yocum and two full-time technicians, James Widders and Howard Brubaker, conduct tests every year for disease resistance, yields and curing qualities. They are doing some work on cross-breeding, trying to develop a lighter leaf color. And there is a renewed research effort on chewing tobacco. Other crops studied at the farm $2.00 Per Year are corn, small grains, alfalfa, soybeans, a few vegetables crons and grapes. With some 20 acres, corn is the biggest crop under study. Yocum and his staff develop corn hybrids especially suited for this area. These hybrids are then grown and marketed by commercial companies. Yocum pointed out that hybrids are developed from inbred strains of corn, and that most of the inbreds come from land grant colleges. Most of the corn research at the center involves breeding, although some commercial varieties are grown and tested for silage yields. Some of the commercial varieties are inoculated with diseases, too, to test their resistance. Much of the corn, as well as other crops, is sold to area far mers after harvesting. Yocum noted that they sell whatever they can, except for those crops grown with the use of pesticides (Continued On Page 23) Farm Calendar Monday, April 23 Fulton Grange meeting, Oakryn. Frost Entomological Museum Show, April 23 - May 7, Tuesday, April 24 1:30 p.m. - County FFA Public Speaking, Parliamentary Procedure Contest, Brown stown Vo-Tech School. 7:30 p.m. - 4-H Soil and Water Conservation Club Roundup and Exhibit, Farm and Home Center. 7:30 p.m - Ephrata Young (Continued On Page 22) Contestants Sought for Princess Contestants are being sought for the 1973 Dairy Princess Pageant. Last year’s winner, Miss Donna Book, will pass her crown on to a new princess during ceremonies on June 23 at the Farm and Home Center. Any young lady who has completed her junior year in high school, who has not yet turned 21, and who is the daughter of a dairy farmer, farm manager, herd sman or dairyfarm owner is eligible to compete in the local contest. Anyone interested in applying may contact Mrs. Robert E. Gregory, Lititz RDI, before May 21. Her phone number is 733-7584. The winner of the local contest will compete later in the year m the state contest. Throughout the state, local dairy princesses help promote the dairy industry by appearing in promotional programs at shopping centers, malls and food stores. They speak to radio, TV and school audiences. They also appear in parades, meet dairy industry leaders and attend a summer training seminar.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers