C2—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, April 25,1981 The phone rings constantly in the office of Les Houck, owner and farm director for Agri-broadcasting Network in New Holland. Houck cheerfully answers and keeps up-to-date on information which affects his daily programming of market prices. Broadcasting network focuses on fanners BY SALLY BAIR Staff Correspondent Should you sell your hay? Is this a good week to take those hogs to market? Are the com paces up or down? Perhaps you’ve had the expenence of being asked to jot down the latest market paces when they are broadcast by radio so your farm family can make some important economic decision. If you have, chances are good that you may have gotten those prices from the Agri-broadcasting Network located in New Holland. Les Houck, owner and farm director of Agri-broadcasting, explains that his network provides up-to-the minute market paces for established radio stations. He says, “We serve as farm broad casters. stations can’t afford to hire someone to do that program, so we supply farm information.” The reports from Agn broadcastmg --e primarily pricing because, as ouck explains, “We feel the farmer would like to know paces above everything else. Our mam emphasis is on the Chicago Broad paces, livestock prices, cash gram paces with local paces in southeastern Pennsylvania, the Delmarva area and Maryland. Out of these markets he can draw a basis of the domestic need and the export need for gram.” Using the latest in technology, Houck talks up to 15 programs daily, updating and into the microphone recording his reports on changing as needed to reflect the latest in the cassettes which are played through the markets, telephone for participating stations. He makes Houck adds, “We are not a news network, so we have no need to report the news. We are all prices. Some farm networks are all editorial. But I like to know what the prices are and I get the feeling that farmers like to know what prices are.” The one exception Houck makes to the stactly pace format is trying to provide background information on why paces are up or down, “to put things m per spective.” He stresses that while he is performing a service that no one else is providing to local stations, all the information he has is also available to them. It is a matter, of course, of their willingness to prepare farm broadcasts and to gather the information. “We can gather for all stations, and the cost per station is lower,” he adds. For that matter, Houck makes it clear that the information which he uses is also readily available to individual farmers. However, he points out, “He can make the phone calls, but he doesn’t.” Houck feels the radio is an im portant tool for fanners, saying, “Radio is a companion - you take it with you. This tune of the year farmers can keep track of prices as they listen to the radio in the tractor cabs or as they grade eggs.” But farmers are not the only listeners. Houck states, “Many people not connected to farming say they like to listen to my reports because we move through so many items so fast. Because of the length of the programs we can’t take long, drawn-out events.” Most of the reports from Agn broadcastmg are three minutes in length, with a few shorter and some longer. The reports are carried basically at two times during the day: early (very early) morning and noon. He says, “Our early morning program is a summary of the day before - it is old news.” About 10:30 the office gears up for the noon reports and then later in the afternoon ihey record updates on those programs. There are several basic reports Houck makes each day, including a dairy report, livestock, livestock and gram, gram and stactly cash gram. These reports are updates throughout the day and are regionalized to some extent so that those being aired in the Delmarva area, for instance, carry paces local to that area. Houck says, “We do about 15 different programs. We may do the same one over and change the cash gram paces.” Nmety percent of the broadcasts are recorded by Houck, with Associate Farm Director Ken Brubaker preparing raye Houck is chief bookkeeper, business manager and f jack-of-all trades. Here she works at the typewriter in the J sunny offices of Agri-broadcasting. and reporting when he, Houck, is unavailable. There are five em ployees working at Agri broadcastmg. All reports are recorded in the New Holland studio on cassette tapes and sent via telephone to the participating stations. When Houck began with the network m 1976 there were nine stations ac- 9i (omesipad cepting his broadcasts. That number has risen to 39, covering the entire state of Pennsylvania, parts of Maryland and New Jer sey. Ideally, Houck likes to have just one station in an area carry his broadcasts and he adds, “We are trying to hold expansion because I feel we could be doing a better job on some of the programming. We always strive for better quality.” He mentions that broadcasts are most widely accepted in areas where there are lots of farmers. He contrasts conditions in the east with those in the midwest where whole cities revolve around the farm. “Here,” he states, “We’re pushed because so many othei things take precedence over agriculture.” As he sits in his Mam Street, New Holland, office, he looks out and comments that New Holland is an example of a town where the importance of agriculture can be readily seen, with a steady stream of cattle trucks and hay wagons driving through the town. He notes, however, that this is not typical for most towns in this heavily ■populated part of the state. Houck feels his location in New Holland is appropriate with the many influential markets close by. He says, “We’re fortunate being located here because prices here tend to be representative both for domestic use and export use, Most gram prices are set off what we’re reporting.” It is quite evident as the con versation goes on that Les Houck has a very intimate knowledge and understanding of markets, futures, commodities and all those items which go into the pricing of farm products both domestically and for export Because of this knowledge ■<os& ■" and what some may consider an inside track, it is not uncommon for him to be asked for advice about buying and selling. While he is always willing to talk, un derstandably he maintains that he is very reluctant to give advice which can affect a man’s financial position. He explains, “What is good for one fanner may be en- t/lbtcs tirely wrong for another, depen ding upon his feed situation and other factors. We try not to predict - we just tell the situation and let him make up his mind.” How does Houck get the latest in prices? He has a wire service machine, Commodity News Ser vice, Inc., which ticks off the latest information from the Chicago Board of Trade and national livestock prices. He adds, “We make calls. We call local markets and local USDA.” He says these places accept their calls for the latest prices and that they cooperate fully. Asked if he ever gets response from his listeners, Houck “Some tell me they are really dedicated listeners and record the prices daily. It’s part of their daily record keeping. A lot of farmers say they have their wives record the price for them.” Houck is very tuned into the business of farming, perhaps because he grew up on a dairy farm in Paradise and continues to love the land. He says, “It is the greatest feeling in the world to be plowing and planting.” With his love of farming, it is no surprise that he enjoys keeping close contacts with farmers. He says, “I go to the local markets to see fanners and to hear the auctioneers work.” He also does some public speaking, ex plaining, “I like to talk to farm groups about gram. I strive to get to know farmers.” Although Houck’s name is recognized fairly easily in a group of farmers, he is not instantly recognized m person, something which is alright with him he enjoys the anonymity of visiting) with fanners just for the joy of it. Another way he likes to meet the (Turn to Page C4>
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