04—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, July 24,1982
All eggs in one basket
The farm economy is in rough
shape. There’s no doubt about that.
Just how bad seems to be the
question. Attitudes among farmers
range from hopeful optimism to
downright depression. And among
farm policymakers and ad
ministrators, confusion reigns.
A recent report from the Farm
Credit System indicates that
farmers aren’t paying their debts
quite as well as in the past, but
they’re not doing all that bad. It
may be too soon for that particular
indicator to judge how well far
mers are doing. At least there is a
hint that the farm economy is
hurting.
The 1982 crops are in the ground,
so there’s not much farmers can do
at this point except wait and hope
for good weather and better prices.
They’ve already decided that
many of their crops aren’t going to
make money this year. It’s more a
matter of how much they’re going
to lose.
Western wheat growers are
quoting a study just released that
shows them losing $3 a bushel 5n
their entire crop this year. And a
report out of Washington says that
although 1982 crops will be smaller
than last year, the total will still be
larger than what is actually
needed and will simply add to the
buildup. Too much last year, a
little more added this year, and
you can see where crop prices are
headed.
So what are the alternatives for
the farmers who have the land and
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the equipment and the crops
already in the ground? There
really aren’t very many. Some
belt-tightening can still be done,
some deferred spending, some re
financing, perhaps even an early
decision to sell out before
foreclosure comes. And the other
alternative that one which most
fanners will choose simply wait
and see what happens.
It’s probably not a good time for
any farmer, but it’s a better tune
for those who have been at it a
while and who have not been too
ambitious in their efforts. It’s also
a better time for those fanners
who are diversified. Maybe that
flies in the face of modem
thinking, but year in and year out
those farmers with some diver
sification in their output have
weathered a little better.
It's an unusual year when all of
the major feed and food crops are
down in price at the same time.
Granted, we’re in that situation
now, but it shouldn’t last too long
and it shouldn’t happen again soon.
It’s also unusual when the various
livestock commodities are down in
price at the same time.
So the fanner who grows some
com and soybeans and milks some
cows and keeps a few pigs and has
a broiler house, might be able to
hang on. Whereas the corn and
soybean farmer,', unless he has
something to fall back on, is going
to be looking at a pretty thin
paycheck this year. Perhaps it’s
old-fashioned to talk about
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diversification - to caution farmers
about putting all of their eggs, in
one or two baskets. But year in and
year out it’s proven to be good
advice. Back in the old days, a
farmer wouldn’t dream of a one or
two-crop enterprise Tndav, it’s
rather common to see a grower
with nothing but corn and
soybeans, and with no thought of
tending any livestock.
There was a concept back in the
old days that said crops and
livestock go together. That a
farmer does best when he grows
feed crops for his own livestock
and markets the livestock rather
than the crops. In those days,
farmers milked a few cows, kept a
few sows, even grazed some
steers. They kept laying hens and
sold eggs, and in some parts of the
country even raised some sheep. A
busy, productive, well-managed
diversified farm in those days was
something to see. There was work
to be done year-round from dawn
till dusk, and there were com
modities to sell whenever money
was needed.
Com could be fed to the livestock
and the excess stored for sale at
the best time. The bam loft would
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be full of baled hay that could be
fed or marketed. A milk check
came in every month, eggs went to
town every week, wool could be
sold once a year, and there was
work for everybody. The kids
tended the young stock, worked in
the garden, helped out in the fields
when needed, and learned about
farming.
Farmers worked toward a
balanced, program of production.
Enough feed for the livestock with
something left over in case of a bad
year, and something to sell for
cash when it was needed. A large
garden provided family food needs
and beef, pork, poultry and mutton
produced on the farm was stan
dard table fare.
But a diversified farm is a
complicated mechanism. It
requries constant attention, a wide
range of skills, and unquestioned
devotion from the entire family.
Besides that, much of it can’t be
mechanized. And that’s why so
many fanners throughout the
country have sold off their
livestock, plowed up their
pastures, and are growing com
and soybeans, wheat and sorghum,
and a ci " 'Vr crops that can be
tended from'the air-conditioned
comfort of a four-wheel drive
tractor. . --
That seems to be the trend in
agriculture these days huge
automated cropping units, pig
factories, giant feedlots, and whole
farms devoted to broiler or egg
production. There are still some
diversified farms in places »
the ground is too rough for larg/
equipment or the farmer is too
stubborn to give up the old ways.
For the most part, these folks are
still doing pretty well in a time of
agricultural adversity.
If there’s a lesson anywhere in
what can be seen in today’s
agricultural dilemma, it’s the mat
ter of farmers being too good
at what they do. Their
specialization and automation has
rendered them more productive
than they-really need to be. As a
result, many’ of them are paying
the price.
Whether there will be more farm
foreclosures x next winter than
we’ve seen over the past few
winters remains to be seem There
are plenty of folks'predicting just
that. In the meantime, most far
mers remain hopefullyoptimistic.
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Mr 6030 Jonestown R-.^
association of Harrisburg Pa. 1711? '
DIESEL SPECIALISTS . 717-545-5931
Interstate 81 Exit 86
Diesel fuel injection and turbo
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We Also Service:
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Daily Shipments by UPS, Parcel Post, or our
representative who is in area regularly.
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o