—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, December 9,1978 20 Decline of family farm hurts small business ° COLUMBIA, Mo. - If the family farm declines, it will bring down with it “the basic business structure of rural America,” an agricultural banker said at a recent agricultural policy seminar at the University of Missouri, here. “I cannot visualize the United States remaining a viable nation of relatively small and mdependent in dividually owned business entities, unless we devise a method of preserving the family operated farm,” said Ag transportation conference set WASHINGTON, D.C. - The American Farm Bureau Federation is sponsoring a national conference on agricultural transportation, February 28 through March 2 in the Washington, D.C. area. The three-day conference will concentrate on the rail situation, but will also m- Napoleon was an insomniac who only slept three or four hours a night. P. E. HESS, BUTLER MFC. CO. Bo* 337, Oxford, PA 19363 Dealer Inquiries Available In Pennsylvania Counties - I C&M SALES INC ifwrwuii i c Clearfield, Venango Mercer Lawrence Beaver Butler I r. D#l CONCRETE rnffiKL, Clarion New Jersey Counties - Sussex, Hunterdon. I Honesda.e Pa 18431 ° on.t CONSTRUCTION Somerset, Warren Morns, Pasaic Phone 717 icio „ Knoxville, Pa. 16928 rhone 717-253-1612 Beech Creek. PA 16822 Phone 814-326-4188 1 Phone 717-962-2564 Name Address Com Phone V.E. Rossiter, President of the Bank of Harrington, Neb. If the family farm doesn’t survive, then “a vast majori ty of the some nine million small stores, small banks, most of the professional peo ple and many of the small communities that these peo ple serve will disappear from the rural scene also.” Rossiter said the agricultural sector has been greatly underpaid, “com pared with the mcome levels of other equally important segments of the economy.” dude a full-fledged debate on truck deregulation, a review of highway and bridge problems, and a look at transportation research. C.H. Fields, assistant director, national affairs, in the AFBF Washington of fice, is coordinating plans for the conference. He said 250 Farm Bureau leaders 3-. 3 ~T~ - -a',S’ S' c. £ BUTLER AGRI-BUILDER State An underpaid agriculture m times of general inflation puts “unfair economic pressure on the family farm.” To “start from scratch” on a rented farm today would require about $25,000. For an operation of the same scale m the 19305, fanners could get started with $2,000; and in the 19405, a start would take $4,000. “Today, it is unrealistic to begin fanning from scratch, and it has been since 1973,” Rossiter said. and representatives of other groups and agencies from all parts of the country are expected to participate. In a letter to State Farm Bureau leaders, AFBF President Allan Grant said that railcar shortages and a range of other tran sportation problems “have developed to the point that we in Farm Bureau must give serious consideration to this vital area of service to agriculture.” The program will mclude industry spokesmen and top officials from Department of Transportation, Department of Agriculture, Interstate Commerce Commission, and members of Congress. faiunoleil Buildings What Pric ■■' j ~ ■ * ‘ ' i" i i^/ A. E. ENGEL, INC PO Box 216 Marlton, N J. 08053 Phone 609-983-4404 FARMSTED I BUILDINGS FOR THE FARMER WHO’S IN BUSINESS TO STAY KAFFERLIN SALES & SERVICE RDJ2 Union City, Pa 16438 Phone 814-438-3180 Unless farm costs and in comes can be brought into balance with the rest of economy, the traditional family farm cannot be ex Debt service payments second to feed costs DENVER, Colo. - The typical American family is spending a larger share of its disposable income for payments on debts than it spends on food, National Farmers Union President Tony T. Dechant told delegates to the 70th annual convention of the Rocky Mountain Farmers Union meeting Dec. 1 m Denver. While the average consumer now spends about 16 per cent of disposable personal in come for food, debt service payments now take about 20 per cent of disposable per sonal income, Dechant reported. Citing a Treasury Depart ment study, Dechant said, “The situation appears bound to get worse with in terest rates heading for new record levels while outstan ding debt of consumers and farmers grows alarmingly.” Farmers’ debts will total $136 billion on Jan. 1 and $153 ORVILLE MACK P.O. Box 47 Nazareth, Pa. 18064 Phone 215-759-1331 pected to survive another decade, he said. “Without an equal number of a new family entries into agriculture to counter- Tony Dechant billion a year from now, he said. “Debt financing now accounts for 10 per cent of farm outlays and is the se cond largest single item, ex ceeded only by feed pur chases.” ALL-STEEL B For Complete Details Or 40’ x 50’ x 14’ All-Steel B BE r/^oAo^ S P N LEROY E. MYERS. INC. W. R. MOOD CONTRACTOR Route #l. Box 163 CONTRACT* Biglerville,Pa ClearSpring,Md.2l722 113WalnutLai Phone 717-677-SjiO Phone 301-582-1552 West 'ewton.Pa. ] Ptv e 412-872-6 *^" E " GREENSIDE O.A.fkwT ON Cambra, Pa*jB6n CONTRACTING *SONI« Phone 717-864-3135 Park ton, MD 21120 Bridgeville, Delaware 199; Phone 301-472-9161 Phone 302-337-8211 balance the loss of aging family farm operators, there will be no one to’ fill the ranks of the family farm. A vacuum will be created.” Pointing to the present high interest rates and the expectation that they will soon set a new record high, Dechant warned, “Tight money and, high interest rates have never been suc cessful in curbing inflation without precipitating a recession or depression. We appear headed on course again.” Instead of persisting in a high interest rate policy, Dechant said that President Carter should use his authority under the Emergency Credit Control Act of 1969 to limit interest rates and credit use. Under that law, he said, “the Presi dent can set maximum in terest rates, set maximum loan sizes, set repayment terms, and if needed, allocate credit to productive uses. Conditions are desperate enough to warrant use of these emergency powers.” SPECIAL I NOW IN EF FARM SEE YOUR LOC BUTLER AGRI-BUILDER Galvanized Roof and Walls
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