VOL. 29 No. 16
Pa. Pork All-American winner Dale Nolt, left, of Manheim,
receives his award from David Reinecker during the
Keystone Pork Congress banquet Thursday night.
PRV depopulation
Is it fair?
BY DICK ANGLESTEIN
LANCASTER Swine breeding
operators are continuing to lose
hundreds of thousands of dollars in
Pennsylvania’s pseudorabies
eradication program that requires
mandatory depopulation of entire
herds without any form of in
demnification.
In the light of the millions of
dollars being spent on the poultry
depopulation, hog producers are
questioning both the legality and
the fairness of the pseudorabies
program, which was instituted by
the Pennsylvania Department of
Agriculture about seven months
ago.
New PRV cases are continuing
to turn up in the state - primarily
in Lancaster County - and it is
believed that the new federal-state
pilot project of blood sampling at
slaughter houses will uncover new
PRV herds and affect even more
producers.
Particularly hard hit when
pseudorabies is found in a herd is
the farrow-to-finish breeding
operation.
Dairy Mgt. Conference
stresses herd health
BY TRISH WILLIAMS
UNIVERSITY PARK - Herd
health was the emphasis of this
year’s Dairy Herd Management
Conference conducted by Penn
State on Thursday and Friday.
Nearly 200 dairymen filled the
conference hall at the Penn State
Sheraton to hear members of the
Department of Dairy and Animal
Science present results of their
research on a variety of herd
health topics.
Jerry Jones of the Virginia
Polytechnic Institute and State
University was also on the panel of
speakers. He addressed the need
for improved dry cow care and
management.
Four Sections
One such operation recently hit
by PRV estimates that it will
require more than half of the
equity in the entire farm to
depopulate and resume operations.
Losses - based on what other
operators have experienced in
depopulation - are estimated at
$5OO to $l,OOO per sow unit. For a
270-sow unit, this brings the overall
figure to a quarter of a million
dollars or more.
Approximately one-fith to one
fourth of the losses are due to the
difference in the breeding value of
the animals and their market
value when they are sent to
slaughter under depopulation.
Pseudorabies poses no threat to
humans and infected animals may
be slaughtered.
For example, the operation lost
some $275 a head on boars - many
of which had already been
promised as breeding stock -
which had to be sent to slaughter.
Other losses include downtime
and loss of profits, which are
further amplified by cessation of
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Featured speaker was Dr.
Graem Mein of Australia. Dr. Mein
is world renowned for his work in
the area of the milking machine
and mastitis. Graem made a
special presentation at Thursday
evening's banquet on the dairy
industry in Australia.
Paul J. Wangness, head of the
dairy science department,
welcomed participants and
stressed the need for good herd
health, especially in today’s
economic setting.
“We remain in an uncertain
situation, at best in the dairy in
dustry,” Wangness said.
“Therefore we must strive for
greater efficiency and reduced
costs through better herd health.”
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Lancaster Farming, Saturday, February 18,1984
At Keystone Congress
Pork Producers honor Nolt
BY LAURA ENGLAND
HARRISBURG Lancaster
County swine producer Dale M.
Nolt, Manheim, was among Pa.
Pork Producers Council members
honored at the Keystone Pork
Congress Thursday night.
Nolt, who’s been involved in the
swine business for most of his 30
years, was named the 1984 Pa.
Pork All-American winner. In
partnership with his father since
1971, Nolt raises York-Landrace
sows and Duroc-Hampshire boars
in his farrow to feeder pig
operation.
Since the partnership was for
med, Green Valley Farm has
expanded into an extensive swine
and livestock operation. The
original partnership included the
family’s 60-sow herd, but was
expanded in 1973 to include the
entire farming operation of 200
acres, feeder steers, layer hens
and the farrow to finish operation.
Improvements in the swine
Another Pa. first - exec. sec.
BY DICK ANGLESTEIN
NEW HOLLAND - FPA has
been a succession of firsts for
Carolyn Witmer, of R 2 East Earl,
Lancaster County.
She was the first female FFA’er
to serve as president of the
Grassland Chapter in the Eastern
Lancaster School District.
Last June, she moved on to the
presidency of the Pennsylvania
Association and thus expanded a
female first to the state FFA level.
But the pioneering achievements
she is helping to bring to the
Pennsylvania FFA go well beyond
just personal accomplishments.
For during her term as state
president - which is just over its
half-way point - she is playing a
role in some “firsts” which will
have long-range importance
throughout the state and to every
youth who puts on a blue and gold
Participants to the Penn State Dairy Herd Management Conference were given the
chance to try and stump the experts. Thursday’s speakers were, from left, Larry Muller,
Jerry Jones, Linda Scibilea and Dr. Larry Hutchinson.
operation included the con
struction of the Nolt’s first
finishing barn for 300 head in 1973,
a second finishing barn and a
gestation barn in 1975, and a
complete new farrowing barn,
nursery and gestation facility in
1977.
Pleased with their current
facilities, the Nolts wean about 9.5
pigs per litter and finish hogs at a
feed efficiency of 2.8 to 3.2. Hogs
are marketed weekly and sold on a
grade-yield basis.
Nolt, a member of the Lancaster
County Swine Producers, will be
recognized for his Pork All-
American honor during the
National Pork Producers meeting
in Kansas City, Mo., in March.
Three youth members were also
honored and received plaques.
Chris Hopple of Mechanicsburg
was honored as the FFA winner
while Dave Houtz of Bellefonte
received 4-H honors.
Serving as secretary-treasurer
It's FFA Week
jacket now and in years to come.
Most important of these
statewide firsts is the coming
$7.50 per year
of her FFA chapter, Chris has
shown pigs since she was 10 and
currently owns 12 gilts of Duroc,
York and Spot origin. She has been
successful in the show ring and has
won championship awards at the
Shippensburg Fair, Farm Show
and county round-up.
A 4-H member for nine years,
Dave raises beef and dairy
animals as well as swine. He
currently owns a herd of Chester
White hogs.
A 9-year-old Council member
from Eighty-Four was also
recognized. Lucas Koffler, who
said he has five years experience
in the hog industry, was awarded
the junior speaking contest title
during the Farm Show. Using hand
gestures and props, Lucas
presented his award-winning
speech on pork marketing to the
Council members, stressing “we
have a good product to sell.’’
Other Council members honored
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naming of an Executive Secretary
for the Pennsylvania Association -
the first statewide position that
will be devoted solely to FFA and
vo-ag activities.
Witmer and other state FFA
officers, Pa. Department of
Education officials and Penn State
ag education representatives have
been quite busy recently reviewing
applications lor the post and it is
expected that the final ap
pointment will be coming within
the next few weeks.
“There’s been a need for an
executive secretary for quite a
while,” Witmer explained.
“We hope to have the person in
place on July 1.”
The executive secretary would
work to coordinate a number of
FFA and vo-ag activities on a
statewide level, including chapter
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