Turkey Conference
(Continued from Page Al)
As the number of two-wage
earner households increases,
Longacre predicts a rising demand
for fully prepared meals that can
be quiddy cooked in a microwave
oven. An increase in the number of
single-person households also
means more interest in easy-to
prepare meals, he says.
But Longacre cautioned that the
turkey industry should not try to
beat chicken at its own game by
providing the same products.
“We’ve got to work cm developing
turkey products that have their
own identity,” he stressed.
A New Disease
With the turkey industry on a
roll, producers should keep a wary
eye on an emerging disease called
reticuloendotheliosis (better
known as RE), said New Bolton
Center’s Dr. Robert Eckroade.
Although the cancer causing RE
virus has been identified only once
in Pennsylvania, Eckroade
cautioned that Marek’s disease
also came from obscurity and
peaked from 1968 to 1970, when the
disease claimed 40 million
broilers.
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RE was was first identified in
Kansas in 1958, and since that time
has shown up in Minnesota,
Virginia and Texas. Hosts for the
disease include turkeys, ducks,
geese and chickens. While the
disease typically causes lesions on
livers and enlarged spleens,
Eckroade stressed that RE has no
effect on human health and causes
cancer only in poultry.
In two infected flocks in the
United Kingdom, the disease was
characterized by the occurrence of
tumors and diarrhea, with mor
tality exceeding 20 percent. When
birds are infected early in life they
will probably shed virus for the
rest of their lives, Eckroade said.
The veterinarian urged farmers
to look closely at their con
demnation rates and examine
tumors in their birds. “It may be
more widespread than we think,”
he said. “We don’t want to bury our
heads in the sand.”
Producer Panel
A panel of industrymen
discussing ways to improve flock
performance rounded out the
morning sessions. Included on the
panel were Jim Skinner of Empire
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Kosher, MifQuitown, Pa.; Jim
Mitchell, Mitchell Consulting,
Harrisonburg, Va.; Roy Alfree,,
Round Hill Farms, New Oxford,
Pa.; and Ben Lybrand, Cuddy
Foods, Inc., Marshville, N.C.
Lybrand kicked off the
discussion, cautioning growers
that while turkey’s popularity
continues to increase, total meat
consumption in the United States
continues to decrease, so com
petition for consumer dollars will
intensify. “We’re going to see
competition from the red meats
that we’ve never seen before,* said
Lybrand, pointing out that the
recently instituted beef and pork
checkoff programs will pump
unprecedented amounts of capital
into promotional programs.
Lybrand said successful turkey
production largely depends on
attention to five factors: feed
quality, water quality, litter
management, ventilation and the
elimination of stress. While quality
in most feed ingredients is not
difficult to monitor, there’s a great
deal of variability in the quality of
fats added to feeds, he said.
Lybrand urged producers to
monitor nitrogen, E. coli bacteria
and levels of solids in their water
sources. On the subject of ven-
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9
tilation, he pointed but that hens
are more tolerant of impure air
than are toms.
Round Hill’s Roy Alfree em
phasized the importance of litter
management. “Don’t skimp on the
shavings in the brooder barn,” he
told growers. Alfree likes to keep
at least six inches of shavings on
the finishing bam floor as well, and
insists on a source of heat to keep
the litter as dry as possible. Alfree
rototills his shavings regularly and
has been able to keep his litter dry
and disease-free for two to three
years.
Jim Skinner agrees that sup
plemental heat in the finishing
house is a must. He also finds that
starting young birds on a vitamin
E and selenium supplement has
eliminated problems with defor
med hearts.
New Regs On Horizon
A new truck licensing law being
proposed by the State General
Asembly would require the pur
chase of a $25 license to haul or sell
live birds in Pennsylvania, ac
cording to Pennsylvania Poultry
Federation executive director
John Hoffman. Aimed at halting
the spread of avian influenza, the
legislation would not require the
license when small numbers of
birds are moved between farms.
“We support the concept, because
avian flu has to begin with a live
bird,” Hoffman said.
Hoffman also reported that the
PPF board of directors approved a
voluntary state indemnity checkoff
fund in February. Aimed at
lessening the effect of avian flu
IfiQoec ; n the state, the fund would
Agway To Buy Farm Bureau
SOUDERTON The Boards of
Directors of Agway Inc. and
Montgomery-Bucks Farm Bureau
Cooperative Association have
voted to approve an agreement by
which Agway will purchase all of
the assest of Montgomery-Bucks
Farm Bureau. Once a final
agreement is reached, the
proposed transaction will be
presented to Montgomery-Bucks
Farm Bureau’s shareholders for a
vote.
The acquisition would include
three feed mills and five farm
stores and will be operated as a
unit of Agway. Montgomery-Bucks
Farm Bureau feed mills are
located at Souderton,
Shoemakersville, and Mifflinburg.
Farm store locations are
Collegeville, Souderton, Dublin,
Bechtelsville, and Warriors Mark.
Montgomery-Bucks Farm
Bureau, formed in 1936, has 1,200
members and 100 employees at
eight facilities and at its
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Laacttf Fanning, Saturday, March 14,1M7-A23
also send a dear signal to
legislators that the state’s poultry
industry is willing to share the
financial burden when disease
epidemics occur. Hoffman em
phasized that the fund is not in
tended to replace state and federal
support, but would protect the
industry from backyard flocks, one
of the industry’s greatest poultry
health threats. The federation has
set a goal of $250,000 for the fund
and is requesting contributions at
the following rates per 1000 birds:
turkeys, $1; broilers, 10 cents;
layers, $1; breeders, $1.50; and
pullets, 20 cents.
Hoffman also warned growers
that micoplasma gallicepticum,
the poultry disease known as MG,
is on the increase in Pennsylvania.
“We have what certainly could be
labeled a serious problem, which
indicates the killed MG vaccine is
no longer effective,” he said.
Although the live “F” strain
vaccine is currently banned in the
state, “We’re going to have to turn
to that to eliminate the disease,'
said the PPF spokesman. Hoffman
said the industry is currently
seeking approval from the
Department of Agriculture to use
the live strain vaccine before the
virus makes serious inroads in
commercial layer flocks. He
acknowledged that the use of live
vaccine would have to be tightly
controlled in order to avoid
causing problems in turkey and
broiler flocks, and he called for
input from the broiler and turkey
industries on the issue.
headquarters in Souderton.
Michael Zapach has served as
general manager and will continue
to manage the operation as a unit
of Agway. Farm Bureau labeled
products will continue to be sold at
these locations for the immediate
future. Agway products and ser
vices will be added as soon as
possible.
Employees of both organizations
are committed to working closely
to ensure a continuation of
member service.
According to Maynard
Rothenberger, Montgomery-Bucks
Farm Bureau board chairman and
president, the asset purchase is
designed to maximize operating
efficiencies while maintaining
farmer control for the benefit of
the members and other customers
of both Agway and Montgomery-
Bucks Farm Bureau. This tran
saction offers many advantages to
farmers in the geographic areas
served.
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Troubles With MG
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