—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, May 8, 1976
16
WASHINGTON, D.C. -
Some farmers could wind up
spending $3,289 an acre for
weed control this spring, if
they fall for the phony
telephone sales pitches of a
few unscrupulous pesticide
companies, a concerned
coalition of Federal, State
and private organizations
warned late last week.
rate of 40 to 200 gallons per
acre. At the 220 gallon level,
the State has calculated that
it would cost a farmer $3,289
to treat one acre.
the Federal Trade - Com
mission, other Federal
agencies, several farm
organizations including the
National Grange and.the
American Farm Bureau,
several environmental. and
consumer organizations
including the Environmental
Defense Fund, and farm
cheini'cals trade
associations.
“The vast majority ’of
pesticide producers and
dealers in this country
condem these unethical
actions on the part of a
1976 and was made to refund laws quite, well. They will
$5,000 in purchases by duped often-avoid a blatantly false
customers. Investigations claim but instead rely on
also are underwaynow by innuendo or implication or
the U.S. Environmental leave our certain vital in-
Protection Agency. formation.”
“There are few records of The coalition urged far
these phone conversations,” mers to help stop the
Train said. “The firms in- telephone sales racket by
volved are shrewd. They- keeping an accurate, record
appear to* know pesticide of such calls and reporting
“In most situations, far
mers and other pesticide
users should buy products
only after they have been
able to read the products*
label,” advise EPA Ad
ministrator Russell E.
Train. “Telephone pur
chases are all right only if
the buyer is dealing with a
reputable agent personally
known to him.”
Many State agriculture
departments and the U.S.
Environmental Protection
Agency have received
numerous complaints from
farmers and other con*
sinners who say they have
been telephoned by
salespersons making false or
misleading claims for some
weed control products.
“The statements , and dishonest few,” Train said,
precautions on pesticide* Besides North Carolina,
labels are backed up by compamts of bogus
intensive scientific study and telephone claims have also
careful scrutiny. The label > c °nie from farmers and
provides a guarantee that ® ~r . us * rs in Arizona,
the product will do an ef- California, Colorado,
fective job in an en- Georgia, Kansas, Nevada,
viromentally safe way. £f_ e w . Washington,
Users should always read West Virginia and other
ot tte «eed control
jtaßaHJyngapeaHade, chemlMls [aund ta the
8111 saia * falsely advertised products
Pesticide buyers should include 2, 4-D, bromadl,
make it unmistakably dear pentachlorophenol, pramitol
to any telephone huckster ~ and diguat dibromide. All of
tlu# they .are not interested these are legitimate weed
in and will not pay control agents, according the
weed control products, the EPA, but they may be
coalition warned.’ Reports ineffective or illegal for the
indicate that waivering uses being claimed,
buyers have sometimes been Prosecution of suspected
shipped the pesticides firms has been difficult
C.O.D. because of the problem of
The claims include that the
products are non-toxic to
people, livestock and fish;
that they mil control all
weeds when in fact they will
only control some; that they
can be used on crops or
pastures when actually they
may damage or destroy
these areas; and that they
will curb all weeds for up to
three years. Prizes are
sometimes offered to the
fanner if he will buy . The
calls are normally made in
the early morning or late
afternoon.
/■
Officials in North
Carolina, where some of the
deceptive telephone
promotion has been oc
curing, have reported that
one weed killing product is
recommended for use at the
Other groups concerned
about the telephone sales
problem are the U.S.
Department of Agriculture,
n
building a legal case on tbe
basis of phone con
versations. But North
Carolina has been active.
Two pesticide companies -
Dartmouth Chemical Corp.,
and Oxford Chemical Corp.,
both of Woodbury, New York
- have been prohibited from
doing business in the State
because of deceptive phone
practices. Another firm,
Jaguar Chemical Corp., New
York, New York, has been
suspended from selling in
North Carolina until July 1,
Bank On
Energy Savings
In The Attic
TO
There’s been a lot said
about conserving energy and
reducing fuel bills since we
lined up for gasoline during
the famed oil embargo. Yet
with all the rhetoric, many of
us still face constantly increas
ing utility bills
“Many homeowners have
attacked the high cost of
heating their homes by seeking
short-term solutions like
turning down the thermostat
or wearing extra sweaters.
Now they discover that those
methods still won’t save them
much money at today’s rates,”
notes Sharon Kay Ritchie,
director of the Certain-teed
Home Institute.
DEPEND ON DEKALB
OEKALB i» * ref st«r*d fcrand Numb«'s des |n*ie hyt^.ns
“Since about 30% of a
home’s heat loss occurs right
through the roof, you can
reduce your fuel bill signifi
cantly by insulating your
attic. There should be a min
imum of 6 inches of fiber glass
insulation (R-19) on the attic
floor,” Miss Ritchie says. In
the average home (1400 sq.
ft.) this insulation pays for
itself in three years in utility
bill savings.
LEECOSTENBADER
Kunkletown
381-3004
JAMES DELONG
Orefield
395-2036
STANLEY FOX
Palm
679-9682>
Other long-term energy
saving home improvements
include adding storm win
dows and doors, caulking
around windows and door
frames and adding weather
stripping.
' I. G. AG SALES
Silverdale
257 5135
JOHN JOHNSON
Orefield
3951823
For more information on
saving money on heating and
cooling, write to the Home
Institute, Certain-teed Pro
ducts Corporation, Box 860,
Valley Forge, PA 19482.
WILLIAM LITTON
Phillipsburg
201-859 1485
MARSTELLER GRAIN INC
Trexlertown
395 2462
ERNEST MILLER
Hamburg
562-8254
Baseball great, Lou Gehrig,
didn’t miss a game for years,
running up a playing streak
of 2,130 consecutive major
league games'
MOYER & SON INC.
Souderton
723 6001 .
Zfcv -. i NEE,. F FV...M ULK MILK C LE,.^
[■3
E
B
m
a
E
E
Phony pesticide sales reported
Plant a proven, big-yielding hybrid.
Order your XL-64a today.
- - vSt
PHILLIPS FEED SERVICE
Germansville
767-3819
PHILLIPS FEED SERVICE
Bath
837-0301
TOE RUTH
' Fleetwood
944-7571
DENNIS TREXLER
Limeporf
967-3362
FRANKLIN TROXELL
Andreas
717-386-5322
WARREN SMITH
Saylorsburg
717-629 1356
LORTON ECKROTH
New Ringgold
717-943-2367
SCHMALTZ BROS.
Doylestown
794-7259
them immediately to a lo
agricultural agency or om
EPA’s ten regional offi(
Helpful Information wo
include: date of the c
caller’s name, bis compa
his phone number, i
product, the manufactur
' and the EPA registrat
number of the product if (
exists.
R
ROBERT STOLTZFUS
Cochranville
593-5982
IRA NISSLEY, INC.
Morgantown
286-9328
NEVIN MYER
Chester Springs
827-7414
NORWOOD WILSON
Oxford
932-8285
HARVEY BRUBACKER
Womelsdorf
589-2632
FRAZER'S FEED
Downmgtown
269 0991
ALBRIGHTS MILL
Kempton
756 4421
JIM BATZ
Richland
717 933-8168
F M. BROWNS
Sinking Spring
678-4567