Al6-Uncaster Farming, Saturday, December 27,1986
WASHINGTON, D.C. - In a
letter to Treasury Secretary,
James A. Baker, 111, National
Grange Master Edward Andersen
continued to protest the inac
curately defined preproductive
period for livestock under the new
Grange Wants Strict
WASHINGTON, D.C. - As the
Department of Treasury continues
the regulation writing process for
the new tax code, National Grange
Master Edward Andersen has
asked Secretary of Treasury
James A. Baker, HI, to be strict in
writing rules which will eliminate
the incentives to convert non
cultivated farmland to productive
ground. Andersen said, in a letter
to the Secretary, “A generous tax
code and farm subsidies have been
responsible for a tremendous
amount of land brought into
Kim Kennedy Receives
Poultry Scholarship
UNIVERSITY PARK - Kim
berly A. Kennedy, a senior
majoring in animal bioscience at
the Pennsylvania State University,
was honored at the College of
Agriculture Scholarship and
Awards Banquet.
She received a Pennsylvania
Poultry Federation Scholarship,
which is granted to students in the
College of Agriculture who are
pursuing a major in animal
science and have a primary in
terest in poultry. Kennedy has
demonstrated academic
achievement and is an active
member of the Penn State Poultry
Science Club, serving as club
treasurer.
At the banquet, Dr. Lamartine
F. Hood, dean of the College,
congratulated scholars and
thanked donors for their support.
He said that as the costs of higher
education continue to rise,
scholarships and awards play an
increasingly important role.
So far this year, 185 students in
the College of Agriculture have
received a total of $178,255 in
scholarships and awards. In its
awards program, the College has
about $270,000, which has been
donated by friends, alumni and
agricultural industries. Awards
Generic Advertising Pays
Dividends For Dairy Industry
BY R.J. BETTER
University of Maryland
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - For
many years there has been a
controversy over the value of
generic vs brand advertising.
There have been studies sup
porting both sides of the issue.
According to a recent study con
ducted by A. D. Little, Inc., as
reported by the U.S. Department
of Agriculture, generic advertising
has been responsible for increased
milk consumption.
An increase of 1.3 billion pounds
of fluid milk have been consumed
since the National Dairy Board’s
Promotion and Research cam
paign has been in effect from
August 1984 to December 1985.
Regardless of the reasons,
consumption of milk and dairy
products increased 3.3 percent in
1985 over 1984 and is up 7 percent
from two years ago. During the
first six months of this year
commercial milk
up 4.2 percent over the same
Definition Of Preproductive
tax law. “The National Giange is
extremely concerned with the
bookkeeping nightmare created by
this provision,” said the national
farm leader.
Andersen blasted the “two
gestation” definitions as being
From Treasury
production which should not have
been.” He said, “The Food
Security Act of 1985 took steps to
correct one-half of the problem and
now the tax code must correct its
contributing share. ’ ’
Andersen stressed the need to
continue the deduction for soil and
water conservation practices.
“Expenditures for soil and water
conservation generate long-term
social benefits for which farmers
and ranchers should receive
compensation,” said the National
Master. He asked that the
Treasury insist the practice be
are granted competitively to new
and continuing students on the
basis of financial need and
academic accomplishments.
Kennedy, of East High Street in
Pottstown, was selected for the
scholarship by the Department of
Poultry Science Scholarship
Committee in consultation with a
representative of the Pennsylvania
Poultry Federation and the College
of Agriculture.
period last year.
It must be recognized that in
creased milk consumption in
recent years has been influenced
by economic trends such as
declining unemployment, in
creasing personal income, and
declining relative price of dairy
products.
Generic advertising of milk has
never been attempted on the scale
that it has since the formation of
the National Dairy Promotion and
Research Board. This is the first
time that the dairy industry has
been in the same league with other
food and beverage industries with
a promotion and research budget
sufficient to provide significant
national advertising of generic
milk and dairy products.
Regardless of the findings of the
various studies that have been
conducted, generic advertising
does appear to cause an increase in
consumption above that normally
expected from other emmic
factors.
Kim Kennedy
inaccurately defined due to the
three distinctly different
management periods as the period
is currently defined. Andersen
suggests the true preproductive
period for livestock is from birth of
Rules
consistent with a USDA/State
conservation plan but that the
conservation practice should not
have to be approved by the Soil
Conservation Service (SCS) before
it is performed. “The role of the
SCS should play is that of a
referee,” Andersen said. “If there
is a dispute about an expense
between the IRS and the farmer,
then the SCS would make the final
decision,” said Andersen. The
National Grange’s concern is that
significant budget cuts suffered by
the SCS will hamper their ability to
service growers and approve
conservation practices in a timely
fashion.
The letter also addressed
drainage of wetlands. “If
productive farmland has a
drainage system which is
upgraded or if there are main
tenance costs to the existing
system, those costs should be
deductible and not considered in
violation of drainage regulations,”
stated Andersen.
The language in the Senate’s
report says that deductions cannot
be made for land that is drained or
filled to make production possible
if such production would not be
possible without such action.
“Upgrading a current drainage
system or maintaining that system
does not violate this language and I
encourage the Treasury to review
these conditions before the final
rules are developed,” Anderson
concluded.
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Period Questioned
the animal begins its useful ac
tivity and is not from the con
ception of the mother until the
animal gives birth.
Andersen explained the three
different management practices
as follows: “From conception of
the mother to birth, the
management practices relate to
the care of the mother. After birth
until the female is placed in the
breeding herd is the second stage
of management. The management
during this period relates to the
growth and development of the
animal itself. When the female is
placed in the breeding herd, the
care of that female is a production
management and is similar to the
care that her mother received
during gestation.”
To further substantiate his
claim, Andersen cited the dif
ference in nutrient requirements
during the overexpanded period.
“The net energy requirement for
growth is higher from birth to
being placed in the breeding herd
but the net energy requirement for
maintenance is higher for a
pregnant heifer. This is indicative
of preproduction growth in the
birth to the breeding period as
contrasted to production main
tenance after breeding.” Andersen
further stated that the higher
calcium requirement from birth to
breeding indicates that growth is
at its maximum.
The National Master also
identified a number of problems
with accurately defining the start
of the first gestation period and the
end of the second gestation period.
“Males do not have a second
gestation period,” Andersen said.
“This then indicates that the
preproductive period for the male
would end when he can impregnate
a cow.” Drawing a comparison,
Andersen suggested that the
female’s period should end when
she can be impregnated. “Unless
this is done, two sets of
requirements will be necessary,
causing problems for both the
rancher and the IRS,” Andersen
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commented.
With modern animal practices,
including artificial insemination,
the use of “clean-up bulls,” em
bryo transplanting, embryo
splitting, and embryo freezing,
Andersen cited a number of
problems regarding when the first
gestation period would actually
start. “If an embryo is split, does
the period start when the donor
cow is flushed, when the embryo is
split (creating new individuals), or
when the recipient cow is im
planted,” Andersen asked.
Andersen also explained a
problem with ending the
preproductive period tor horses.
“The intent of the provision was to
stop the period when an animal
begins its useful purpose,” said
Andersen. “Normally, we talk
about when livestock enters the
breeding herd, however, race
horses, show horses, rodeo horses,
etc., perform their useful purpose
prior to being bred,” he said.
Andersen also stated that in the
Tax Reform Act if the farmer
makes the election to deduct the
cost of raising livestock rather
than capitalizing those expenses,
he/she must use straight line
depreciation on all farm assets.
“This needs to be narrowed in
scope,” said Andersen. “In a
diversified operation, only assets
relating to the specific enterprise
should be required to use the
straight line depreciation method
and not all farm assets,” he said.
Andersen concluded with a
request that the preproductive
period be defined from birth of the
animal until it is placed in the
breeding herd (except horses).
“Not only is it indefensible to start
the preproductive period when the
mother conceives because the
management during the mother’s
pregnancy is a production oriented
management directed to the
mother and not the animal itself,
but it is also impossible to have a
rule that indicates when the first
gestation period starts due to
modem practices,” said Andersen.
Mira Fount
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