AlD—Lancaster Famine, Saturday, ton* 26,19»2
As we say goodby to another June Dairy
Month, we have to confess this has not been
the best anniversary celebration for the in
dustry
Faced with continued milk surplus
production, increased competition from dairy
imports and imitations, most dairy farmers
admit they have had fetter months and years
Next Monday, dairy leaders from across the
state will be meeting with Secretary of
Agriculture Penrose Hallowed to try to for
mulate some acceptable solutions to the dairy
situation. Since dairy farmers voted down the
dairy promotion program last month, the
leaders will have to look for other ideas with
more down-on-the-farm appeal.
And government leaders in Washington
continue to hear testimony on proposed
federal programs to solve the national dairy
dilemma Some, like Arlen Specter, have even
called their own special sessions back home to
get the farm industry’s viewpoints on the
problem
But there are other problems in the dairy
industry besides pricing and overproduction
One we find particularly aggravating is the
regulations governing accreditation of herds
for brucellosis and tuberculosis-free status
Dairy farmers who wish to join the ranks of
cattle breeders who can export their animals
with the least red tape strive for accredited
herds. With this state-endowed status, far
mers do not have to constantly hire
veterinarians to visit the farm for blood and
skin tests for each potential sale prospect
Instead, one telephone call to Harrisburg’s
Bureau of Animal Industry sends the
necessary paperwork to the farmer and the
cow can be on her way
Now, all this sounds fine But, like any other
government program which combines both
federal and state regulations, things don't
always go according to plan.
With automation to help handle all the herd
and farmer records in the state, BAI has
graduated to the modern world of the com
puter. But, this wonder machine is not in
fallible and has a tough time deciphering some
of the information farmers send in.
For instance, take the case of a young dairy
couple who were recently married, combined
their accredited herds, and went into business
on a nearby farm. Although both of the herds
were deemed brucellosis and IB free when
they were on separate farms, the young couple
was shocked to learn they had lost their ac
creditation just by getting married and
bringing the two herds together.
What had happened was the computer
could not figure out how the newly-wed wife
could have a herd under a maiden name And
the forms for filing the information would not
allow her to fill in both her married and maiden
NOW IS THE TIME
To Control Flies
The good growing conditions
we’ve experienced this spring for
field crops also favor the build-up
of fly populations. The abundant
moisture presents ideal conditions
for maggots to develop into flies.
We suggest that livestock and
poultry operators use residual
insecticides on their building and
pit walls to cut down on the fly
problems. Also, you may want to
use different materials at different
intervals to break the cycle. Flies
Sounding
By Sheila Miller, Editor
That’s not how it should be
By Jay Irwin
Lancaster County Agriculture Agent
Phone 717-394-6851
are immune to some of the old line
materials but some of the newer
materials such as Ectiban and
Atraban are doing a good job. For
laying hens, the newly approved
Larvadex, as a feed through, is
giving excellent results. Follow
label instructions for rate of ap
plication.
One of the most important
practices in keeping down the
number of flies is to clean up the
place, and eliminate fly breeding
areas. Manure packs and other
Off the
name What was easily understandable to a
human was totally incomprehensible to the
machine
Another problem with the accreditation
system is the criteria which stipulates each
herd must be tested annually for brucellosis
whether you have any animals of testing age or
not
Take f or example the case where a young
dairyman had the ambition and foresight to
start building his herd while still in school. He
had purchased dry cows from previously
accredited herds and brought them to his
parent’s farm to calve After freshening, the
cows were leased oufto nearby dairy farms
while the calves stayed on the farm.
By the time the calves reached testing age,
two years had passed When the young man
checked with the state concerning his herd
status, even though the calves should have
retained the status of their mothers, he
learned his brucellosis-free status had been
lost. Why? Because he had missed testing
animals one year.
When he explained that he had nothing to
test because the cattle were too young, the
state veterinarians told him the federal code of
regulations specifically requires that animals
be tested every year.
Rules are rules, as everyone knows
whatever happened to common sense?
Lastly, we believe there needs to be more
cooperation between states when it comes to
issuing and monitoring health charts on cattle.
What meets the requirements of one state’s
Department of Agriculture should also qualify
in another
Not like the case where a dairy farmer with
an accredited herd purchased a heifer at an
out-of-state sale. Although the heifer had a
"clean bill of health" when she entered the
sales ring and later boarded the farmer’s
truck, the farmer later learned his state vets
decided she wasn’t "clean" enough.
To the farmer's dismay, his entire herd was
quarantined because he brought this heifer
home And now he must bear the expense of
testing and retesting his cattle to requalify. If
the original state’s animal health bureau had
done its job to satisfy our veterinarians, this
farmer would have been saved plenty of
aggravation and money.
This is not to say all the rules and
regulations governing inter and intrastate
movement of cattle are questionable and
ridiculous. Quite the contrary, they are
essential in protecting farmers against disease
outbreak and epidemics.
But, if the rules need to be changed to add
some common sense exceptions, then
revisions should be made. Too often we just sit
back and say, “Sorry, that's the way it is”
rather than “Here’s how.it should be "
Board
debris are good fly breeding
places.
Good sanitation along with in
secticides go a long way in keeping
flies under control.
To Feed Dry Matter On Pasture
Pastures are very lush this
spring due to favorable growing
conditions. This means that
livestock can utilize some dry
matter while on pasture. This can
include hay, straw or silage. With
the dry matter present, they will
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BEGIN WITH
THE LAST COURSE
June 27,1982
Background Scripture;
Matthew 27:3-5;
Mark 14:10-11,17-21,43-46;
John 12:3-6; 13:21-30.
Devotional Reading:
John 12:1-8.
Remorse is often the bitter
dessert that is served when we sit
down to a banquet of con
sequences. Perhaps if we were to
sample the just desserts first, we’d
be motiviated to miss the whole
sorry affair.
When we consider the story of
Judas Iscanot, for example, we
can’t help wishing he had known in
advance the terrible remorse he
would feel later. If he had, it seems
likely that he would not have
betrayed Jesus.
Judas is a tragic figure, but his
experience has much to say to us.
He began as a trusted disciple,
trusted enough so that he was
made the treasurer of the
disciples. He shared some im
portant experiences with Jesus
and heard from his bps the
teachings that later would change
the whole world an opportunity
of a lifetime!
Not That He Cared
Yet, it is obvious that something
happened to Judas along the way
that led him to squander that great
opportunity. Why Judas betrayed
Jesus is unclear to us today. The
most obvious clue, according to the
gospel records, is that Judas’
loyalty was eventually eroded by
But
OUR READERS WRITE,
I’m disgusted. Of all the places
to find one of those untrue, out
dated anti-cholesterol articles
pumped out by institutions who
should know better by now, 1 didn’t
expect L.F. to be one.
Even a “nutrition intern" should
know that a high cholesterol level
is not necessarily bad that high
density lipids versus low density
lipids have been found to be the
controlling factor in
atherosclerosis.
And polyunsaturated fats have
been found to possibly contribute
to cancer.
I think you owe your dairy, beef,
and hog farmer readers an apology
for running a “canned" article
HAV HAWS
. i
j I
(
TS
As a matter of fact, Leroy, no. You’re not going to be re
placed by a machine ”
If only we might learn to sample
the last course first, we might
avoid our banquet of consequences
altogether.
AND OTHER OPINIONS
Cholesterol question
Editor’s note - Your criticism of
the news release “Modified diet
may lower blood cholesterol”
which appeared in the June 12,1M2
issue of Lancaster Farming echoes
the reaction most farmers have
when someone mentions the word
cholesterol.
As University of Delaware’s
intern nutritionist Susan Herman
points out, “too much cholesterol
may contribute to heart disease”
but adds that sc may high blood
ll
his greed. Luke tells us that, when
Jesus was anointed with costly oil
in the house of Lazarus in Bethany,
Judas complained at this ex
travagance, suggesting the money
should have been spent to help the
poor. But Luke hastens to explain
to us that “This he said, not that he
cared for the poor but because he
was a thief, and as he had the
money Uni he used to take what
was put into it.”
Judas cared for Jesus, but ap
parently he came to care more for
money and its power. Eventually,
he sold-out Jesus for the sum of
thirty pieces of silver. A terrible
judgement on Judas, but what of
us? We too care for Jesus, but is it
possible that sometimes there is
something else for which we care
more 7 What is the price for which
we are willing to sell-out our Lord?
See To It Yourself!
Some commentators have
speculated that Judas never really
meant to betray Jesus of that what
he did was the result of a moment’s
weakness. Perhaps those in
terpretations appeal to us because
we can identify with them. When
we betray our Lord and many of
us do it is often, not because we
set out to do so, but because along
the way something else becomes
more important to us. Or, we may
assume that our infidelity doesn’t
matter all that much.
Unfortunately, all too often by
the tune we realize,,the con
sequence of what we have done, it
is too late for use to turn back the
clock. Wracked with remorse, we
find there is no one to comfort us.
As the chief priests and elders
responded to Judas’ confession,
“What is that to us? See to it
yourself,” so we find little comfort
once our just desserts have been
served.
without an editorial disclaimer.
Bob Corbin
Hampstead, Md.
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