The Milk
Cheek
TOM JORCHAK
County Agent
Now What
Keeping the 50 cents in your milk
check may be a small consolation
for the adjustments you may have
to make this year. Right now no
one knows what lies ahead and the
uncertainty is what can drive you
up the wall even worse than taking
50 cent cut if you could have been
sure that that would have been the
end of your problem.
The lame duck session of
Congress didn’t have time to
consider near dairy price support
legislation. One of the things it did
pass was a five cent increase in the
gas tax and increases in license
fees to save the interstate highway
system and create some jobs. You
may not think that has anything to
do with milk marketing but con
sider who hauls your milk from
farm to market.
Hauling farm products (in
cluding milk) is not regulated (at
least as far as setting rates) in
interstate commerce so it becomes
the principal business of in
dependent haulers rather than the
larger freight moving companies.
With the independent haulers
threatening strike the end of
January because of the tax and
fees increases there may be a lot of
milk left in bulk tanks at the farm.
Everyone hopes it won’t happen
but the memory of the last haulers
strike is still fresh in the minds of
northeastern Pennsylvania far
mers and they’re worried.
Congress Convenes
About the came time the
truckers threaten to strike.
Congress returns for ns next
session. They’re aware of what
they provided for dairy price
supports in the last session and
what has happened since, in
cluding the law suits. They
generally felt that they were being
considerate and even generous in
what they provided in the last
session in view of a lade of unity in
the dairy industry.
Now they’re being blamed for all
the problems and being asked to
crane up with a new solution.
Unless there’s more concensus this
time in the industry than there was
last year. I’m afraid the cost will
be higher than 50 cents.
Md. scientists develop alternative to surgical boar castration
COLLEGE PARK, Md. -
University of Maryland animal
scientists believe they have found
a stress-free alternative to surgical
castration of young boar pigs
raised for pork production.
A large daily dose of synthetic
hormone - called an LHRH- blocks
the production of the male hor
mone testosterone and decreases
DMA contributes to Ag Arena
V <*■
The Pennsylvania Dairy Herd Improvement Association, in memory of the late Dexter
N. Putnam, retired Extension dairy specialist, contributed $6,194 to the Penn State Ag
Arena Fund last week at the organization's board meeting on the University Park
Campus. From left: Oliver Butler of R 7, Weilsboro, DHIA president; Mrs. Putnam of
State College; Samuel Smith, dean of the College of Agriculture; and Phillip Dukas,
director of the Penn State DHIA program. The contribution represents one dollar for
every herd enrolled in the program. Contributions to the fund currently total $650,000
of the $900,000 goal. The facility will be used for student activities and statewide shows
and sales.
steroid androstenone - in the blood
stream of mature boar pigs, ac
cording to the scientists.
The presence of androstenone in
the body fat of boars causes their
cooked meat to take on an un-
pleasant smell and taste, called
“boar taint,” according to
scientists Douglas Greger, W. Ray
Stricklin and Monica Haaland of
Lancaster Funning, Saturday, January 29,1983—A35
To overcome that problem, pork
producers commonly castrate
boar pigs, Stricklin said.
In addition to reducing stress to
the animal and decreasing labor
inputs by pork producers, Stricklin
pointed out there are other ad
vantages to using the LHRH
agonist over castration.
Uncastrated boars are leanei
ficiently than castrated pigs,
called “barrows,” according to
Stricklin.
The hormone injection method,
he said, requires additional testing
to determine how it affects boar
growth and the development of
boar taint in meat before it can be
adopted by pork producers as an
alternative to surgical castration.