VOL. 31 No. 12 Five Sections Farm Show comes down to the best of the breed Secretary of Agriculture Richard Grubb was on hand to congratulate Mike Messick for a job well done. Joe Kuzemchak of Pleasant Gap, Centre County, won the prestigious market lamb championship with his 137-pound Suffolk wether. ... With honors to owners, growers and producers, too HARRISBURG - While most farmers, growers and producers tend to think of the Farm Show for its livestock and dairy com petitions, its carnival atmosphere and its equipment displays, the annual event is also a time of recognition for the industry’s outstanding individuals. Hundreds of personal awards were presented during the show’s six-day run, with recognition extended to young and old, producer and processor alike. Dr. Richard E. Grubb, State Secretary of Agriculture, kicked things off Saturday night at the Pre-Farm Show Dinner by con ferring the State Agribusiness of the Year Award on a Lebanon County company. The firm, Kutztown Bologna and Country Fresh Foods of Myer stown, sells specialty foods through a network of door-to-door salesmen as well as major food service distributors. Sales of the firm’s bologna, beef, chicken and pork products totaled an estimated $2.6 million in 1985. The company employs 26 people. PENpages Governor Dick Thornburgh officially opened the Farm Show on Sunday, touring the exhibits and becoming the first person to use the brand-new PENpages com puter linkup. After Thornburgh cut the ribbon, the system was officially open to anyone with access to a computer and a telephone hookup known as a modem. The complex information system, created by the Penn State extension service, is thought to be the country’s only agriculture computer system that can be accessed free of charge. Users of the system, however, must have use of a computer and pay for their telephone call into the system. “This new system will give our farmers daily, hourly and even minute-by-minute access to the information they need,” Thorn burgh said. “It puts Pennsylvania way out in front of other states. ” Later, in remarks to the crowd at opening ceremonies, Thornburgh talked about the system’s ap plication as an information source on weather alerts, market in formation, and other important data. “It’s another advanced Lancaster Farming, Saturday, January 18,1986 Kutztown’s Todd Bennecoff showed grand champion market hog. HARRISBURG Clear, but cold weather brought good crowds and good fortune to the 70th annual Pennsylvania Farm Show this week. A record number of entries, combines with solid attendance figures, gave organizers the op portunity to claim that this year's edition erf the ag extravaganza was bigger and better than ever. With a full slate of livestock and crop competitions, the Farm Show truly lived up to its billing as the largest indoor agricultural exhibition in North America. In competition Thursday, Mike Messick of Messick Farms, Middletown showed the grand champion market steer for the show. Earlier in the week, top market animals had been selected in swine and sheep categories, and grand champions had been named in the six dairy breeds. The selection of the market animals capped a week of breed technology way we can show our agricultural producers, ‘You have a friend in Pennsylvania.’” Pioneer Fanner Award The governor also took the oc casion to recognize the state’s “Pioneer Farmer,” J. Fred Campbell of Tyrone, Huntingdon County. Campbell, now 80, attended the first Pennsylvania Farm Show ever held, and hasn’t missed one since. He exhibited Belgian draft horses at the Farm Show for 35 years, retiring in 1968, and showed the grand champion stallion at the 1959, 1961, 1962 and 1968 Farm Shows. Campbell was raised on a 257- acre dairy farm, and used a horse drawn wagon to sell the milk produced by the farm’s 35 Ayrshire cows. The family also raised goats, sheep, horses and potatoes, producing 463 pounds of potatoes per acre in 1930 to earn a spot on the state’s 400-bushel club. Farm City Award The Franklin County Farm-City Committee was honored as the best in the state in 1985. Grubb presented the first-place placquc shows m all the livestock categories, as well as competitions in a varied lineup of agricultural pursuits. Farm ShotaMesuiUs Dairy: Holstein A 26 Jersey A2O Guernsey A2O Ayrshire A 26 Brown Swiss A2l Milking Shorthorn A2l Sheep: Junior Breeding Sheep 818 Open Breeding Sheep Dl6 Junior Market Lamb 819 to Committee Chairman Dalton Paul at the Secretary of Agriculture’s Night Festivities at the Farm Show. Second place was awarded to the Lebanon Farm-City Council, represented by David Wauls, executive director of the Lebanon Valley Chamber of Commerce. ■ The Berks County Committee, Pioneer Farmer - Governor Dick Thornburgh awards the Pioneer Farmer Award to J. Fred Campbell of Tyrone, Huntingdon County, while his wife Margaret looks on. , Leroy Plance shows his grand champion Holstein. Extensive coverage of this major agricultural event can be found in this week’s Lancaster Fanning. Beef: Open Breeding Beef A 22 Junior Breeding Beef A 24 Junior Market Steer AlB Swine Bred Gilt Show Dl2 Junior Market Swine A3O Draft Horses Dl4 winner of the award last year, captured third place for its 1985 program. In addition, the Pennsylvania Kiwanis Clubs received special recognition fur support of the Pennsylvania Farm-City Week, which celebrates its 30th an niversary in 1985. 67.50 per Year Turn to Page A 37)
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