Dairy Co-Op Backs Pizza Promotion As Way To Increase Milk Use
SYRACUSE - The U.S.
government has one answer to the
nation’s milk surplus encourage
farmers to go out of business—but
there is another solution that now
may be more viable, according to
the head of a major East Coast
dairy cooperative.
“We have the opportunity to
increase consumption of dairy
products,” said Michael Donovan,
general manager of Eastern Milk
Producers Cooperative.
“It’s a solution that appears
more viable than ever,” Donovan
added, “now that a major pizza
chain has approached the National
Dairy Board for help in promoting
extra cheese on pizza.”
Just adding two ounces of
mozzarella cheese to pizzas across
the nation would absorb an ad
ditional 2 billion pounds of milk per
year, he said. That would help
reduce the surplus to below the 5-
billion-pound ceiling set in the 1985
Farm Bill, he said, which would
keep the Secretary of Agriculture
from cutting the price paid to dairy
farmers another 50 cents per
hundredweight next January and
save additional farmers from
leaving the dairy industry.
With dairy farmers and pizza
makers pooling efforts and ad
vertising dollars, Donovan said,
projections given to the dairy
board show mozzarella con
sumption could nearly triple in just
10 years, thereby utilizing an
additional 17.8 billion pounds of
milk from the nation’s dairy
farms.
Earl Forwood, the farmer
president of Eastern’s board of
directors, echoed Donovan’s
support of a proposal that national
and regional dairy promotion
boards, which are funded by
assessments on the milk that
TUES. & WED.. FEB. 3& 4
★ 10% DISCOUNT ON PARTS
ALL WEEK!
★ FREE LUNCH
I1:30to1:00i
★ PRODUCT
FILMS!
DEUTZ
ALLIS
BU NEW IDEA GEI3
Complete Sales
And Service
ROY H. BUCK INC.
Ephrata, RD2, PA.
farmers produce, work with pizza
makers.
Forwood noted that the nearly
3,800 member farmers of Eastern
have a stake in cheese production.
He said a majority of the 2 billion
plus pounds of milk that the co-op
handles annually supplies cheese
manufacturing throughout the
Northeast including Eastern’s
own mozzarella plants in Waverly
andHorseheads.
Donovan said the co-op
“recognized the growing potential
of mozzarella cheese” in the late
1970 s when it decided to spend $24
million to build the plants.
“Eastern’s dairy fanners staked
part of their future on mozzarella
cheese, and it’s paying off,”
Donovan said. He cited tee “in-
HARRISBURG - A $5 million
supplemental appropriation for
agricultural research and the
Cooperative Extension Service
would be authorized under
legislation sponsored by State Rep.
Samuel Morris, D-Chester County.
Morris, chairman of the House
Agriculture and Rural Affairs
Committee, said the appropriation
would help offset shortfalls caused
by federal budget cutbacks.
Legislation (H.B. 63) allocating the
additional funds was introduced
recently by Morris and House
Minority Whip Samuel E. Hayes
Jr., R-Huntingdon. The legislation
has more than 40 co-sponsors.
The supplemental appropriation
would go to the College of
Agriculture at Pennsylvania State
University, where it would be used
to fund extension services and
agricultural research during the
remaining months of the current
fiscal year.
> * See The New Deutz-Allis
“62” Series Tractors!
717-859-2441
creasing popularity of Italian
cheeses” among consumers.
In New York State, Donovan
said, Italian cheese production
jumped from 95.3 million pounds in
1975 to 260.1 million pounds in 1960.
Likewise, he said, mozzarella
production nearly tripled from
56.6 million pounds in 1975 to 158
million pounds in 1965. The
Eastern mozzarella plants, he
explained, accounted for more
than 70 million pounds of that 158-
million-pound output, which placed
New York third in the nation for
mozzarella, and second for Italian
cheeses.
Nationally, he added, mozzarella
production more than doubled
during those same 10 years,
totaling about 1.05 billion pounds in
Bill To Aid Extension Introduced
Morris said Federal funds have
traditionally financed 60 percent of
extension personnel and 40 percent
of research personnel at the
university. He said federal funds
have already been cut by ap
proximately $ll million on an
annual basis; additional federal
budget cuts are anticipated in
fiscal year 1987.
“The $5 million we are seeking
would finance ■ important
agriculture-related programs until
the new state budget is approved
this summer,” Morris said.
Morris said the supplemental
appropriation bill should be seen
as part of a statewide effort to
encourage economic development.
“Agriculture is Pennsylvania’s
number one industry,” he said.
“The state’s economy depends on
agriculture, and agriculture
depends on the research and
cooperative extension programs at
Penn State.”
9 AM to 5 PM
You're Invited...
Stop In And Visit!
1985.
Donovan went on to cite tee
impact of just one pizza maker on
tee nation’s milk supply.
“In 1961, this large chain of pizza
restaurants decided to add 4
ounces of cheese to their pizzas,”
he said. “In three years, their sales
grew 71 percent, and tee amount of
milk teat had to be produced to
make their cheese went from 460
million pounds to a whopping 1.3
billion pounds.” That is an in
crease of 860 million pounds of
milk, he said “860 million
pounds not in tee surplus, and all
because of the action of just one
pizza chain.”
Now tee pizza chain wants to
launch a nation-wide promotion to
get consumers to ask for extra
Morris said the money sought by
his legislation would finance
livestock and crop research, food
science and business management
programs, 4-H Clubs and a variety
of educational programs.
“We are seeking a modest
amount of money which will
provide important services to our
state’s leading industry,” Morris
said.
Milk Marketing Specialist
To Speak In Maryland
.BEL AIR, Md. - Local
dairymen from Harford and Cecil
Counties will have an opportunity
to hear the latest information
concerning the dairy situation and
government policy Feb. 2, 1967 at
7:30 p.m. in the Southhampton
Middle School.
According to Brenda Schucker,
Agricultural Extension Agent, Dr.
Robert Jacobson from Ohio State
University will discuss “The Dairy
Situation, Outlook and Policy”
with particular emphasis on the
supply management issue.
UEBLER FEED CART
PROMOTION
i'BliHl..
Hydrostatic Drive, Gas or Electric Feed Carts
27 Bushel - Gas
30 Bushel - Gas
43 Bushel - Gas
30 Bushel TMR Mix Cart - Gas
43 Bushel TMR Mix Cart....
UEBLER
Lancaster Fanning, Saturday, January 31,1M7-A3S ’
cheese, Donovan said.
“Eastern is all for this,” he said,
“because it will not only divert
more milk for cheese production
for that company, but it will also
put pressure on other pizza makers
to use more real mozzarella
cheese.”
Whether national and regional
dairy boards will support such a
promotion remains to be seen,
Donovan added, “but dairy far
mers and pizza makers getting
together in this way will make a
good marriage.”
“Everyone benefits,” he said.
“Consumers will buy a tasty,
nutritious product, and at the same
time help dairy farmers who have
been hit hard with lower net prices
for their raw milk.”
Morris said the supplemental
appropriation bill is also intended
to make the legislature more
aware of the need for agricultural
research and extension services.
Hearings on the state’s 1967-88
budget will begin in March, and
Morris said funding for those
services will probably be a key
element of Penn State’s budget
request.
Schucker noted that Jacobson is
recognized as an authority in the
area of milk marketing and has
been a speaker at milk marketing
seminars across the country.
A panel discussion will Mow
Jacobson’s address and further
investigate the issue of supply
management. Panel members will
include Dr. Jack Wysong, from the
University of Maryland, and a
representative of Dairymen, Inc.,
Interstate Milk Producers and
Maryland-Virginia Milk
Producers.
K & S INC
RD #1
Quarryville, PA 17566
$2,900
$3,400
$3,600
$3,900
$4,000