Future Looks Good With Current Rates Of Milk HARRISBURG Pennsylva nia milk production figures sup plied by the United States Depart ment of Agriculture for July showed a decrease in cow numbers , from a year ago. Also, total pro duction decreased by 10 million pounds from the same period. USDA figures show that in Pen nsylvania in July 1986 there were approximately 732,000 cows in the state compared to 720,000 in July of this year. The Milk Termi nation Program may be having the greatest affect on the decreasing number of cows in the state. The production decrease from 867 million pounds of July 1986 to BS7 million pounds for July 1987 show a 1.2 percent decrease. According to Jack Kirkland, dairy marketing specialist at Penn State, the decrease may be up very slight ly due to the affect the hot weather has been having on the cows. Production per cow rose slightly at .4 percent from 1185 pounds per cow in July 1986 to 1190 pounds per cow for July 1987. Milk pro duction per cow for June 1987 was at 1210 pounds per cow compared to July 1986 which was at 1185. However, the total production for June 1987 was at 866 million pounds, just 1 million pounds less than the total production for July 1986 at 867 million pounds. For the 21 major dairy states, which account for approximately 84.5 percent of total national pro duction, total milk production was at 10.433 billion pounds of milk in July 1987. That is a .3 percent decrease from July 1986 which was at 10.468 billion pounds of * milk. According to Kirkland this is the first time Pennsylvania has been down more than the states production. In the 21 states the number of the decrease cost of dairy ration, milk cows decreased by 2.7 per- The average cost per ton in the Cy/ The satisfaction that comes from do ' ng a good Tk \ H\ k™ B a'.\ 11 1 Liming is one of the most important T\U K* I factors in keeping your soil in the highest C J productive range By raising the pH from w* % LpJ a level below 60t06 5 or higher you can ” i.—” fTi expect to harvest as much as 5 more '.A* '.'i .'4> >_, }i») bushels of corn per acre with similar increases ,or _ forage and cash ORDER NOW F.OR PROMPT DELIVERY , . ■ Blue Ball f 717) 354-4125 jMPWKiTOIIL cent from this time last year while milk production per cow rose by 2.5 percent. For July 1986 there were approximately 9.032 billion cows and in July 1987 there were 8.785 billion cows. Milk produc tion per cow was at 1159 pounds for July 1986 and in July 1987 it was 1188 pounds. According to Kirkland, the future continues to look better for farmers in 1987. All figures con sidered costs are down. There is a reduction in the number of milk cows due to the buyout program and also to the fanners who went out of business for other reasons. The situation looks good for the farmers as prices continue to improve throughout the year, which he feels they will. In addi tion, with butter and cheese prices on the Chicago market above sup port prices the outlook is very favorable. “Unless we see a tremendous surge in production, prices will hold up for farmers," said Kirk land. Also if production does not increase in die first half of 1988, the Minnesota and Wisconsin prices may not go down. The average price for milk cows in Pennsylvania for July 1987 increased by 10.7 percent from $B4O in July 1986 to this year’s price of $930. Presently in the northeastern states which include Pennsylvania and all the states to the north, the measure of profitability, the milk price to feed costratio, is at 1.61 up from 3.9 percent from July 1986 at 1.55. This is above the estimated breakeven point of 1.33 denoting the relative profitability of the dairy industry. Part of ratio increase is due to northeast last year was approxi mately $l6O. This year a decrease LEFTS • John Deere • International 'Harvester • Massey- Ferguson • Oliver SPECIAL ....... 16" Share STOCK NO. DIAMETER | GAUGE 72A161 72A1615R 72A162 72A163 72A180 72A180SR 72A181 72A182 72A1820 72A1821 72A201 72A202 72A205 72A207 72A208 72A225 "SCSSSSmmmmmmm SPECIAL i 50 Lb. Box of Rods Welding Supplies POLYETHYLENE FILM Size • 12x100 • 16x100 • 20xlQ0 • 24x100, • 28x100 * • 32x100 • 40x100 Mon.-Fri,: 7AM- 5 PM Sat. :7 AM-12 Noon of 4.4 percent puts the cost at $153 per ton. Kirkland suggests that the - TILLAGE PARTS PLOW SHARES Lefts and Rights OSMUNDSON ROCK SHARES (Heat Treated - Deep Suck) 5/8" Thick Nose Guaranteed Against Breakage PLAIN EDGE DISC BLADES 20" SILAGE COVERS 6 Mil Black PRICE Silo Size ..$23.75 • 12' ..$31.75 • 14' ..$39.50 “ • i6' ..$47.50 • ig' ..$54.75 • 20'!....", ..$63.50 • 24' ..$90.75 Credit Cards Accepted ■ Production price for feed in Pennsylvania may have been even lower. THICKNESS (DECIMAL) (.118) (.118) (.118) (.118) (.118) (.118) (.118) (.118) (.138) (.138) (.138) (.138) (.138) (.177) (.177) (.177) M.M. BLACK POLYETHYLENE SILO COVERS No. SC-12 SC-14 SC-16 SC-18 SC-20 SC-24 Sales 717-3544731 RIGHTS • John Deere • International Harvester • Massey- Ferguson • Oliver $8.70 TO FIT AXLE SIZE 7/8 x 1 sq. 7/8 sq. x V rd. Ixl 1/8 sq. 1 1/8 x 17. sq. 7/8 x 1 sq. 7/8 sq. x 1" rd 1 x 1 1/8 sq. 11/Bxl 7. sq. 1 x I 1/8 sq. 1 1/8 x 17. sq. 1 x 1 1/8 sq 1 1/8 x 17, sq. 17. x 1 3/8 rd. Ixl 1/8 sq. 1 1/8 x 17. sq. 1 1/8 x 17, sq. . $49.95 Cfr $1.15 lb. PRICE ...$6.95 ...$8.75 ...$8.75 $12,50 $14.85 $19.75
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers