V01.22N0.14
Shelhamer confirmed ag secretary
By DIETER KRIEG
HARRISBURG - Penn
sylvania’s new secretary of
agriculture believes there’s
virtually no job too tough for
an efficient fanner to tackle.
That’s why be has made a
solid farm background one
of the prerequisites
necessary to work in his
department. “Hie farmer is
Family farms threatened
HARRISBURG - An Ag-
Land Trust investment plan,
proposed by two major
financial firms, threatens
the existence of family
fannsin America and would
lead to higher consumer food
prices, the Pennsylvania
State Grange warned last
week.
Energy crisis contemplated
By SALLY BAIR
Feature Writer
LANCASTER, Pa. -
Agricultural uses of energy
have been given priority in
all major pieces of
legislation dealing with the
natural gas crisis, according
to Edward Callan, Columbia
Gas Transmission Company.
Calland answered the
question of agricultural
usage at a meeting called by
Rising milk production worrisome
By DIETER KRIEG
MOUNT JOY, Pa. Dairy
industry leaders and Penn
sylvania’s new secretary of
agriculture, Kent
Shelbamer, are expressing
some concern over the trend
of milk production. Inter-
State Milk Producers
Cooperative, which held a
district meeting here on
Thursday afternoon, noted
PFA works with marketing
By SALLY BAIR
Feature Writer
LANCASTER, Pa. - If
you’re interested in buying
and eating premium Penn
sylvania products, the
Pennsylvania Farmers’
Association has a direct
marketing program made to
order for you.
Lancaster County Far
mers’ Association President,
Earl Newcomer,
Washington Boro Rl, ex
plains that PFA’s marketing
Serving The Central and Southeastern Pennsylvania Areas - Also Maryland, New Jersey and Delaware
Down-to-earth approach preferred
very versatile, he had to be,”
Kent Shelhamer told Lan
caster Farming in an in
terview on Monday. “He is
ingenious and diverse, that’s
what I want to develop in my
department.”
Shelhamer, who has a
strong farm background
himself and still operates a
farm in Columbia County,
In a letter to Pennsylvania
congressmen and to the
United States and Penn
sylvania secretaries of
agriculture, J. Luther
Snyder, master of the State
Grange, declared that the
plan would put' the
production of major field
crops - such as corn.
16th District Congressman
Robert Walker last week to
discuss the area’s energy
goals and seek possible
answers.
Commissioner Robert
Bloom said that the Penn
syvlania Public Utility
Commission “will do what
we can” in meeting the
needs of Pennsylvania food
industries during the crisis.
He was unsympathetic to
that its January 1977 supply
increased by 9% per cent '
over a year ago. The energy
crisis was partially blamed
for the predicament. As fer ;
as is known, no milk needed '
to be dumped, although there <
were some very dose calls.
One situation which hung |
in the balance in a very
precarious position was the
future of milk shipped to
program is organized to
provide fresh, quality
produce direct to con
sumers, both members and
non-members. He says, “We
pay premium price for the
best quality - we don’t try to
meet anyone’s competitive
price.”
According to Vaughn E.
Hunter, sales director for the
Pennsylvania Agricultural
Cooperative Marketing
Association, an arm of PFA,
the program started five
Lancaster Farming, Saturday, February 19,1977
wants the Pennsylvania
Department of Agriculture
to be more responsive to
farmers’ needs and he says
he will work diligently
towards that end. Describing
-himself as a “mover and a
shaker,” the 52-year old
former legislator says his
office will be open to hear
(Continued on Page 17]
soybeans, wheat and other
grains - “under the control of
two financial giants.”
The Ag-Land Trust idea
was developed by the Con
tinental Illinois National
Bank and Trust Company
and the brokerage firm of
[Continued on Page 16]
plants which had not made
arrangements for a second
“back-up” fuel systems as
they have been told to do, but
he also said he was reluctant
to see milk dumped because
of it.
When asked specifically if
farmers would be assured of
“adequate” supplies to meet
their spring needs,
(Continued on Page 151
, Dietrich’s Dairy in Reading.
' The firm turns fluid milk
into powder and came close
to having its gas supplies
shut off. Inter-State con
vinced the Public Utilites
Commission to change the
status for Dietricks and the
gas kept flowing. Also in
strumental in saving the
area’s dairymen a king
aized headache was Myers’
years ago as a fruit
program, when PFA par
ticipated with the Florida
Farm Bureau in shipping
, citrus to Pennsylvania.
Eventually,- Hunter said,
“We developed our own label
and started selling apples
down there.”
From this modest start,
the program slowly became
involved in marketing hams,
mushrooms and grapes, and
IConiMid m Pan II)
Meet Pennsylvania’s new secretary
of agriculture Kent Shelhamer, a
Columbia County farmer with 12
years of legislative experiences
behind him. Professing a practical,
grass roots, nuts-and-bolts
philosophy, Shelhamer wants his
Metered Gas Service of
Maoheim which furnished
emergency fuel supplies to
the Reading firm. A check
with Dietrich’s on Thursday
afternoon revealed that the
crisis is over and that no
such serious flare-ups are
expected in the immediate
future.
The burden of having too
much milk on hand remains
however. Concern over
excessive supplies was
Daniel Martin
Department to be responsive to
farmers’ needs. His reputation as a
listener and a "mover and shaker"
are well known and respected. The
senate confirmed him as secretary of
agriculture on Monday by a 47 to 0
vote.
expressed by Dr. James
Honan, general manager of
Inter-State, and Daniel
Martin, Manheim area
dairyman who serves as
vice-president of the dairy
cooperative.
Joining the dairy
cooperative leaders in
voicing this concern was
Pennsylvania Agriculture
Secretary Kent Shelhamer,
who in an interview with
In This Issue
Fann Calendar v 10
Editorial comments 10
Homestead Notes 42
Home on the Range 45
Jr. Cooking Edition 47
Women’s Calendar 48
Joyce Bupp 48
Dairy feature 62
Classifieds 64
Fanners oppose dam 94
YorkDHIA 98
Living feature 105
Public Sales Register 107
Sale Reports 127
$4.00 Per Year
Lancaster Farming on
Monday said:
"I think today ire are in an
area of having substantial
surpluses in milk, and we
could see some read serious
problems in the milk in
dustry. This could
precipitate some new
legislation. ’’ He added that
he hopes he is wrong in his
assessment, but that all
(Continued on Page 23}
James Honan