f j Brockett’s Ag Advice
m By John E. Brocket!
Farm Management Agent
* Lewistown Extension Office
Different Marketing Methods
Supply management is usually
another word for quotas. Many
farmers talk about the need for
supply management, but few are
really willing to pay the price. Last
week I attended a conference on
Milk Supply Management. It was a
very informative session. One of
the major topics covered was the
Canadian milk quota system. Here
are some of the prices the
Canadian dairyman has had to pay
to get the stability and higher
prices for milk through their quota
system. (1) Limit on size of
operation; (2) Requirement to
produce a relatively uniform
amount of milk every year
(producing below quota can cause
loss of part of the quota); (3)
Reduced opportunity to bring a
child into the business; (4) A loss
of milk sale volume (about 1
percent in the past 15 years; (5) An
attrition of 67 percent of their
dairyman neighbors m the past 15
years; (6) Less flexibility in the
sale of their farms (quotas are
controlled by a quota board); and
ill A high start-up cost for new
farmers.
What have they gamed 9 In some
respects, their gams have been a
lot In others, their gains seem to
be hardly worthwhile. A major
gam has been a very stable milk
market with pounds sold in 1985
being 99 percent of the pounds sold
in 1970 Due to quotas, production
and sales were kept in line (In
contrast, this country had com
mercial sales in 1985 that were 109
percent of 1970 sales with
production increasing by 16 per
cent for the same period.) 1985
blend prices in Canada were about
$1 i 11.5.) higher than 1985 blend
prices here In place of commodity
purchases, the Canadian govern
ment pays their dairyman a bonus
(about $2 per cwt. in 1985).
Ebv trailers or truck bodies can haul anything you want even Brahman bulls
You can haul livestock in a trailer hooked
to your pickup. Or on the other hand, you
may prefer a truck and livestock body for its
maneuverability
Perhaps you need to haul dairy cattle
Or calves Hogs Sheep Horses Even a
Brahman Bull
You decide what vou want Then practical
ly design your own Eby trailer or livestock
body before it's custom made Choose
Many counties will hold
meetings or workshops on milk
supply management as a result of
last weeks session. The Canadian
system is only one of the available
alternatives. Other items that
were discussed at the clinic were
the ECC (European) program,
past attempts at a quota system in
this country, some possible
alternatives within a quota
system, and a modification of the
base/excess progrlam. All
dairymen should attend one of
these marketing sessions.
However, the entire program will
be of no value unless those at
tending go with an open mind and
pay close attention to history.
There were several unanswered
questions that were mostly
economic in nature. Has the quota
system really increased the net
spendable income of all Canadian
dairymen 9 Or has it simply pushed
out the less efficient more rapidly 9
Where will the system be in 5 or 10
years if the attrition of dairymen
continues at the present rate 9
What portion of the milk product
market has been taken over by
imports and substitutes or
imitations in Canada 9
Marketing and Price
Marketing, or selling, is not a
strong point for most farmers. Yet
it is important that farmers in
general realize that marketing is a
vital part of their business.
Marketing strategies may cause
different parts of the American
farm sector to become bitter rivals
in the same way CMC and Ford
are rivals. An example would be
the rivalry of the soybean producer
and the dairyman. Whether either
one admits it or not they are often
vying for the same market. This
market may be fluid milk vs.
imitation or filled milk or it may be
ice cream or butter vs. oleo
Eby Gives You Choices
length, width and height Select from a
variety of partitions and doors Even decide
whether or not to have a tool box In short,
our versatility lets you own just what you
want
But you don’t have to
make all the choices
Everv Ebv livestock body and trailer is
aluminum No matter what options vou
If it's aluminum and hauls agricultural products, it must be from M H Eby in Blue Ball
ami ganne. vVnen one at me ilemi>
out-pnces the other in the eyes of
the consumer, the “better” buy
will be the one purchased. What
are some of the factors that help
format the consumers decision of
what to buy’' il) Actual com
parative price is probably most
important. (2) Purchasing habit is
more important than many people
realize even you as a farmer
often buy by habit. (3) Quality of
the product can be a major factor
those ads showing people
changing their buying habits, due
to finding the rival product is
better, can be true. 14) The con
sumers perception of the producer
has become important - look at
the grape boycott of a few years
ago or look at the companies that
are pulling out of South Africa
(they are not doing so out of any
support for the anti-apartheid
movement, but out of pure
economics, i.e. people not buying
their product)
How do businesses try to sway
peoples attitudes’ Some may call
Leb. 4-H’er
LEBANON - Lebanon County 4-
H member, Dean Nolt, traveled to
Richmond, Virginia, last week to
represent Pennsylvania at the
National Agricultural Engineering
Contest. Nolt, sixteen year old son
of Roy and Janice Nolt, Richland,
represented Pennsylvania 4-H and
placed thirteenth in the National
Tractor Safety competition.
Nolt received the title of Penn
sylvania’s top Tractor Safety
Driver earlier this summer by
winning the PA 4-H Safe Tractor
Driving Contest held at Ag
Progress Days in mid-August. He
topped a field of tractor driving
winners representing counties
from across Pennsylvania.
Competition in the Tractor
Safety contest goes beyond just
naming the number-one tractor
driver. It includes identification of
tractor parts and a written
examination including questions
on tractors, their maintenance,
and safety. The goal of the
Lebanon County program is “to
develop an appreciation for safe
operation and maintenance of
farm machinery within our
youth,” states Ken Winebark,
Lebanon county agent. He con
tinues, '‘ln Lebanon County alone
choose, your trailer or body will never rust
or need paint. It’s as much as 35°/o lighter
than steel and wood construction for in
creased load capacity and better fuel econ
omy And heavy-dutv standard components
ensure safe, trouble-fiee hauling for vears to
come
Now all these choices can he vours toi
probably a lot less than you expect In tact
when vou figure in the durability and low
Lancaster Farming Saturday, October 11,1986-Dl3
it public relations, may
term it advertising. It reallv
makes no difference which it is
called, the result is making people
aware, then making people desire,
and finally causing people to buy.
Obviously, the product that can do
this the most effectively will be the
one that is profitable. Well ad
vertised products often outsell
lesser advertised rivals even when
the lesser advertised products are
less expensive and have the same
quality.
Advertising
Does advertising really help’
Most big companies obviously
think it does. Consider milk con
sumption over the past decade.
Pre-national advertising years of
1975 through 1983 ( 8 years) saw an
increase of about 8 billion pounds
in all milk products consumption.
That was about the same as the
increase from the end of 1983 to the
end of 1985. What was the dif-
Competes In Tractor Contest
last year we had two farm really excited.” The Lebanon
fatalities, both youth, one of which County Tractor Safety program
was one of our 4-H’ers. This has meets for 10 nights in the months of
instilled a real challenge for me to January through March. Non-farm
encourage a strong 4-H Tractor as well as farm youth are en-
Safety program in the county, couraged to join. For more m-
After our first-year tractor formation call the Lebanon County
program, our kids and leaders are Extension Office at 274-2801, Ext.
350.
Dean Nolt of Richland placed thirteenth in the recent
tractor safety contest held in Richmond, Virginia.
ference’
What is the most effective type of
advertising? Obviously no one
really knows or everyone would be
using that one method. Most
consumers like to be told that
something is good for them, good
to them, or helps them achieve a
goal with very little effort. Many
farm products advertisers are late
starters but are catching on very
rapidly that a good advertisement
emphasizes the virtues of a
product. Or, says the product is a
new unproved version of a former
product that was familiar to the
consumer. Thus the milk ad
vertisements are finally catching
up with the present fitness desire
of the consumer, ergo the fitness
ads and the calcium ads (for once
doctors are for the dairy industry).
Have your noticed the new updated
and upbeat beef ads? They em
phasize the new lower fat beef as
well as the excellent source of
protein.
maintenance, an Ebv all-aluminum livestock
body or trailer is a fantastic value So give us
a call, or write, tor more information and the
name of the dealer nearest you
MH EBY, INC.
Blue Ball, PA 1750 b
717-354-4971
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