VOL. 30 No. 17 No-tiII means no run-off, says USDA’s Myers BY JACK HIiBLEY LANCASTER - The USDA’t Assistant Secretary foi Natural Resources and Environment came to Lancaster's Farm and Home Center on Tuesday to promote no till s\ stems, and offer insight into the administration’s market oriented approach to Farm Bill ’lto Speaking to .100 farmers at the Lancaster County Conservation District’s fourth annual Con servation Tillage Conference, Peter My ers expressed confidence in the agricultural community's ability to manage soil and water I think we can clean up our own house,” said the formei Soil ( onservation Service chief, ‘but we're (farmers) only three percent of the population and some day we're going to have to answer to the rest of society." he cautioned And the surest way to solve the current soil erosion and nutrient run-off problems, according to Myers, is by adopting no-till systems. ‘ln my opinion, as a farmer, I think no-till fits into most farming operations ’ he said Economically, there’s no doubt m my mind that when you lose soil Corestates Financial Corp. economist A. Gilbert Heebner, talked about the value of the dollar and its impact on agricultural trade, during a speech to the Hamilton Bank Agri- Education Seminar this week at the Farm and Home Center. Missing kids on milk cartons Milk cartons featuring photos of missing children are appearing on supermarket shelves across the country The cartons are part of a nationwide campaign to locate children who have been criminally abducted. For more on the milk cartons, see this week's family living section on page 816 Five Sections \ou lose dollars-nght now ” And in a dry year, you're noinially going to make a bettei ci op, he pointed out. speaking h oin his own experience as a swine larmer in Missouri Alluding to the fact that no-till farming is not the sole answer to the watei pollution problem, Myers emphasized that good herbicide management is crucial I have very strong concerns about herbicide management,” he said, noting that improper use and disposal of excess chemicals can have grave consequences for the environment. In his own state of Missouri, Myers said, farmers must first pass a test and obtain a license before purchasing any farm chemicals Pointing out that no-till farming, definitely cuts the cost of production," Myers added that, if he were a young farmer getting started today his equipment purchases would include a used tractor, a sprayer and a new no-till planter But even the most efficient ■'‘biTiftin tion methods probably won't help those farmers carrying excessive debt loads, said Myer^, INSIDE this issue Lancaster Farming, Saturday, March 2,1985 turning to a discussion of the farm bill Brief l.v outlining the cunent proposal, he said that the ad ministration hopes to make the transition to a market-oriented ag economy within three years To accomplish this, loan rates would drop to 75 percent of a com modity's price based on the average market value during the past three years To ease the impact of lower loan rates, the administration plans to reimburse farmers for the dif ference between the loan rates and the target price. For the first year of the program the target price would equal 100 percent of a commodity’s value based on the same three-year average The target price would drop in succeeding yet.ls, lowering a farmer's deficiency p u . nient This pattern would continue until the target price reached the loan late, whereupon farm income would be tied directly to market demand for products ‘The concept, 1 tank, is sound, ' said Put opinion is that the time „ nod is (Turn to Page A3B) Strong dollar hurts ag trade, Core States economist says BY JAMES H. E\ ERHART LANCASTER - A brutally stiong US dollai has helped keep inflation down but has hint out ability to export by making om prices too high, a Coi estates economist told about 300 farmeis this week Thus, important sectors ot oui i'(ononi), including some manufacturing industries and agriculture, have not shared in the recent prosperity, ' Core States Executive Vice President A Gilbert Heebner told the Hamilton Pa., Md. Holstein “ Happenings ” Holstein breeders trom across Pennsylvania and Maryland gathered last week for their annual state conventions. For complete coverage of the PHA business meetings, awards breakfast, and banquet, turn inside to A2&-29. News of the junior meetings can be found on 830. Turn to A 24 for a report on the Maryland Convention Sale and state Holstein award winners Keynote speaker at the Lancaster County Conservation Tillage Conference on Tuesday was USDA Assistant Secretary for Natural Hesources and Environment Peter Myers, who urged farmers to put away their plows in favor of no-till systems. Bank Agi i-Education Sutunai at the Farm and Home (. entei At the same time that the stiong cuirency makes our expoiting puces too high, it make 1 - foreign goods much less expensive 'thus, it stimulates low-priced foreign competition like Canadian pork 01 grain from South Ameiica and other competitors As a result, he concluded, In agi [cultural commodities, where we normally have a large surplus ot exports over imports, the sui plus dwindled from $27 billion in Two Holstein conventions were held last week - more inside. 1 7.50 per Year 1981 to about $lB billion in 1984 Despite the adverse effects on the farm economy, there s no ea\\ way to bring down the value of the dollai without stimulating m cleased inflation and highci in to est tales, he said Ihe i esult, then, is an increase in the misery index” for farmers, w filch, he said, is the ratio of prices paid tor feed and equipment, compared to the prices received for farm products (Turn to PageA37)
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