VOL 23 No. 23
1 Actor doesn’t take soil for granted
By DIETER KRIEG
CAMP HILL - Television
actor Eddie Albert doesn’t
soil for granted. In
Bgßr he has a high level of
respect for the land and the
people who work with it
professionally. “Farming is
the only true source of
NJ, milk bill alarms Shelhamer
HARRISBURG - Penn
sylvania’s . Agriculture
Secretary Kent Shelhamer
warned Wednesday that a
bill recently passed by the
New Jersey Assembly could
have serious effects on the
milk production processing
and distribution system
throughout the New York,
New Jersey and Penn- •
sylvania region.
Shelhamer said that the
bill, A-727, which Js awaiting
action by Governor Byrne,
would require New. Jersey
mUk dealers tothuy 25 per ,
foffjjjftheir milk from New
t t>roducers, in order to
be licensed. He noted that
- the rushed through
the state Assembly as part of
a deal for authorization for
temporary casino gambling
licenses. _
Shelhamer said that many
New Jersey farmers are
involved with milk
producing' _ cooperatives
which -Cross' state lines, in „
both New York and Penn- ,
sylvania, and suggested that
the bill, as passed by the
Assembly could be con
sidered a restraint on trade.
“Federal Courts have held
that states may not interfere
with the shipment of milk
from state to state,” he said.
Feeder pig prices escalating
borrv
fcntsNCASTER - Prices of
feeder pigs have
fisen'sharply in the past two
i w eeks, with New Holland
I Wing their feeder pigs
1 U S 1-2,30 to 40 lbs. bringing
$126 to $142 per hun
uredweight at their sale this
Past Wednesday. While those
John Smith
tone/ Southeastern Pennsylvania /\reas - Also Maryland, New Jersey and Delaware
wealth for a nation -
agriculture is renewable,
rather than finite like coal,”
he told a group of farmers
here on Wednesday. .
Albert, star of the current
television series “Switch,”
and “Green Acres” from a
few years ago, ' takes
Shelhamer explained that
a majority of milk producers
in eastern Pennsylvania,
southeastern New York and
New Jersey have supply and
- distribution patterns which
are channelled through
markets in Allentown, New
York City and Philadelphia.
“In order to guarantee the
provisions of this bill,” he
said, “cooperatives would
be faced with severing their
' already existing supply
patterns* Routes wouldhave
to be changed, and hauling
and processing costs would
be significantly increased,
resulting in higher consumer
costs.”
The New Jersey bill came
into being as a result of 80
dairymen in northern New
Jersey having lost their
market. The producers were
cut off by handlers because
of the severity of the milk
surplus crunch which is
being felt nearly everywhere
in the country. Aside from
the 80 shippers cut off J>y the
dairies, an additional 120
dairymen have received
warnings that they might
also lose their markets if
some upgrading of con
ditions isn’t made on their
part.
Assemblyman Robert F,
prices were slightly lower
than those gotten last week,
they are still way above the
prices for feeder pigs one
month ago.
According to the Pa.
auction report, which covers
the New Holland, Lancaster,
and Wilmington sales in Pa.,
during the week ending April
1, the graded feeder pig
County agent honored in York
By DIETER KRIEG
YORK - “It isn’t what I
do, it’s what gets done
together,” said John Smith
modestly and sincerely when
a group of York County
farmers presented him with
a plaque in honor of years
of service to their com
munity.
Smith, director of the
Cooperative Extension
Service for York County,
was 'described as ’’one of
York County’s genuine
Uncaster Farming, Saturday, April 8,1978
agriculture very seriously.
Although he’s not a farmer,
he considers himself to be a
“mouthpiece” for farmers,
and has even gone to
Washington, D.C. to state his
opinions on agricultural and
nutritional matters.
Albert’s most recent trip
Littel, representing Sussex,
Warren, and parts of
Atlantico Counties, in
troduced A-727 into the New
Jersey legislature,
Lancaster Fanning was
told.
According to Kathryn
LeHi Co-op regains momentum
ALLENTOWN - Lehigh
Valley Cooperative Fanners
reported a record sales in
crease and further improve
ment in its financial condi
Robert Barry
market was strong to $2O
higher, with spots $3O higher.
They reported TJ.S. 1-2, 30 to
40 lbs. bringingsl27 to $l5O.
John Zimmerman, chief of
the livestock division of the
bureau of markets in the Pa.
Dept of Agriculture, said
that there appears' to be a
slightly shorter supply of
pigs, with both the New
assets” by George Williams
of the York County
Agricultural and Home
Economics Extension
Service Committee. “Few
people are as dedicated as
John Smith,” Williams told
the group of about 150 people
who gathered for the 60th
annual meeting and bafiquet
of the organization. The
evening event took place
March 31 at Avalong’s
Restaurant, here.
Smith, who has been in
to the nation’s capital came
Wednesday, when after
leaving central Penn
sylvania, he was due to
testify before the McGovern
Committee the following
day. His topic, he revealed,
would be nutrition.
“When you talk nutrition,
Clark, legislative liaison for
the New Jersey Department
of Agriculture, the bill has
not received any significant
opposition so far. It has been
passed by both the Assembly
(Turn to Page 36)
tion for the fiscal year en
ding January 31,1978.
Sales for the 750-member
organization, the largest
*mfik processing cooperative
Alpheus Ruth
Holland and Lancaster
market supplies a little
lower than usual. Although,
he added there was a much
bigger run this past week at
New Holland, with over 1560
hogs, compared to the 80 sold
last week. This 1500 was
more than was sold at that
(Turn to Page 20)
Extension work for 30 years,
was caught by surprise when
Williams praised him and
his contributions to York
County agriculture. Stepping
to the podium to receive his
plaque, the amiable
agriculturalist and educator
-said that his work requires
the cooperation of many
other people in order to be
successful. He acknowleged
help from farmers, staff
members at the Extension
Service, county com
you should begin with' the
soil,” he said emphatically.
“That’s where it all starts.”
A growing world
population, the deterioration
and erosion of the land, and a
general turning away from
wholesome foods are the
chief reasons for Albert’s
motivation on behalf of
agriculture. Perhaps more
of an environmentalist and
ecologist than farmer,
Albert claims he has seen
the devastating effects of
poor planning and
management. He wants to
try and do his part to change
the scene.
The television actor is not
at all pleased with
McGovern Committee’s
in Pennsylvania, increased
to $lO4 million from $98.9
million the previous year,
Robert P. Barry, president,
reported to the annual
meeting here on Tuesday.
Loss from operations show
a dramatic decline to
$394,854 compared to a loss
from' operations of $1.2
million sustained the
previous year, and
represents a marked im
provement in the
cooperative’s financial con
dition, Barry stated. 1
He pointed out that the
cooperative achieved pro
fitable operations for the
final five months of its fiscal
year but was unable to over
come losses resulting from
an extended strike which
closed Philadelphia area
supermarkets and from
costs associated with start
up of a block cheese line at
the Allentown plant.
“Without these two fac
tors, Lehigh would have at
tained the break-even point
in operations,” he said.
“Based on our current per
formance rate, we are pro
jecting a profit for the cur
rent fiscal year of $500,000,”
Barry told the meeting.
He said this turnabout
would be on target in ac
cordance "with the five-year
program initiated by the new
administration when it
missioners, and parents of 4-
H*ers.
The 4-H program which
Smitli directs in part is one
of the most successful in the
country and ranks as one of
his most significant
achievements. At last
Summer’s state-wide 4-H
Achievement Days at
University Park, for
example, York County
youths emerged with an
(TurntoPage26)
$6.00 Per Year
Eddie Albert
dietary suggestions. The
government’s findings would
have people believe that
animal proteins are un
(TurntoPage3s>
assumed management of the
cooperative in mid-1974. The
program called for extensive
reorganization and restruc
turing of the company, plant
improvement and equip
ment modernization, and
revitalizing of marketing
and sale activities.
In less than four years,
losses have been reduced
substantially from $3.0
million, Barry noted.
Membership has increased
from a low of 628 to the cur
rent 750 and is continuing to
rise.
An important step during
the year, he told the
meeting, was formation of
Atlantic Dairy Processing
Co., a wholly-owned sub
sidiary, which has initiated
production and marketing of
(Turn to Page 21)
In this issue
Farm Calendar 10
Editorial 10
Letters 10
Medicine &Mgmt. 16
Benlate 39
Agpolicies
views from Washington 42
Ice cream maker 45
4-H News 48,140
Classifieds 50
Homestead Notes 82
Kendy’s Kollumn 84
Joyce Bupp 86
Ida’s Notebook 87
Home on the Range 88
Jr. Cooking Edition 90
Farm Women Calendar 91
Penn’s Agri women 91
Recipe Swap 93
Doris Thomas 94
My Thoughts 95
Ornamental horticulture 96
State Holstein Show 97
Solar home 104
FF A news 110,115,117
Holly Milk Co-op 112
Keystone Expo. Center 114
PFA legislative dinner 131
Antibiotics 132
Soybean sales 134
Sheep management 139
Benlate