AlO-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, February 20, 1988
Farming
n
OPINION
GUEST EDITORIAL
Cooperation Key
To Improved Farm Income
BY KATHY E. GILL
Executive Director,
Pa. Association of
Farmer Cooperatives
What’s a dairy
farmer to do?
Federal prive support levels
have dropped steadily throughout
the ‘Bos, from $13.10 on January
1, 1983 to $10.60 on January 1,
1988. And most economists arc
forecasting a drop to $lO.lO on
January 1, 1989.
Six years and a 23 percent drop
in federal milk prices, despite a
paid diversion program and a
whole-herd buyout. The writing is
on the wall: the federal price sup
port program is heading steadily
back to its origin - a vehicle for
price support... not a price-setting
mechanism but a floor, the prover
bial “safety net.”
Northeastern regional factors -
higher land values, attractive off
farm employment opportunities,
declining unemployment rates -
are not factored in the federal
price.
Higher prices, then, must come
from the market, not the govern
ment. And the only way all North
eastern dairy farmers can realize
higher prices and improved net
farm income is by working
together. That means joining and
supporting cooperatives like the
Regional Cooperative Marketing
Agency (RCMA), the Middle
Atlantic Milk Marketing Agency
(MACMA) or a more traditional
dairy cooperative.
The alternative is to let
Washington-set prices trigger dog
eat-dog competition as producers
scramble for the small fluid market
share with individual handler
premiums.
An issue of control
There is a lot of rhetoric in farm
circles about farmers being pricc
lakers, not price-makers. It’s time
to substitute action for words.
Cooperatives are the only way far
mers can control their prices and
achieve higher farm income.
Why? It takes unified, collective
action to exercise the right to
establish the price of milk.
Organizations like RCMA and
MACMA have been able to unify
dairy farmer economic interests.
Because milk used for fluid con
sumption has the highest value and
is the most difficult to import from
other markets, that is where the
premium is being fought.
The Class I premium is the dif
ference between the farmer
established price and the federal
order price. Remember, these pre
miums are in addition to the prices
paid by traditional cooperatives or
Lancaster Farming
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Everett R Newswanger Managing Editor
other handlers. It’s the icing on the
cake, so to speak. So if a few hand
lers succeed in convincing their
farmer suppliers to turn their backs
on cooperation, who is exercising
market control?
Something this powerful, with
this much potential for improving
farm income, must be illegal,
right? Although there are folks
who would have you believe
RCMA is illegal, they are wrong.
A question of legality
Congress recognized that far
mers could never set the price they
received for their products if they
were prohibited from joint market
ing. That’s because there are a lot
more farmers selling milk than
there are handlers buying it. So
Congress provided protection for
farmers who want to exercise con
trol over their pricing.
There is a restriction: farmers
cannot unduly enhance prices.
That’s why RCMA’s current Fed
eral Order 2 Class I price of $ 14.45
is determined using economic fac
tors in the market. In fact, this price
is three percent lower than the Fed
eral Order 2 Class I price in Janu
ary 1985.
Over the same period, consumer
prices have increased. From 1985
to 1988, the consumer price index
for food increased an average of
3.15 percent per year. B ut the price
farmers received for milk has
steadily declined. Clearly, dairy
larmcrs are not guilty of undue
price enhancement.
So what is a dairy farmer to do?
Federal programs arc taking a
back-seat to market forces. So far
mers who want to control the price
they receive for their product,
rather than take whatever price
someone is willing to olfcr have
only one answer. Cooperate with
fellow dairy farmers Today.
Tomorrow could well be 100 late.
Farm Calendar
Saturday, February 20
Lancaster FFA Meal Judging,
Stauffers, 9:30 a.m.
Adams Co. Fruit Growers Annual
Mtg., Bendersville Community
Hall
Cumberland Valley Coop Annual
Mtg., Shippensburg Senior
High School Shippensburg.
Cecil Community College Horse
Program, Cecil Co., Md.
Monday, February 22
Soil Fertility School, York 4-H
THEY DON'T MAKE REAI-MEN LIKE ME ANYMORE
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OUTDOORS AND X WORKED OUTRIDE, ALL DAY LONG, I N
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NOW IS
THE TIME
By Jay Irwin
Lancaster County Agriculture Agent
To Use
Quality Seed
Many people are making plans
for the 1988 growing season. In
these plans, we should be prepar
ing to use the very best quality
seeds possible. Leftover seeds may
be satisfactory if properly stored.
If they are certified or top quality
seed to start with, it would be a
good idea to run a germination test
to be certain they’ll grow. This can
be done with the old, but still effec
tive, “Rag Doll” method (wrap
ping seeds in a rolled-up moist rag
or burlap, or by placing seeds in a
dish on wet paper towels, cover
with plastic, and keep in a warm
place for at least 10 days). If these
seeds do not grow under these
tests, don’t rely on them for your
crop.
Certified seed may cost a little
more in the beginning, but usually
is worth the difference.
To Broadcast
Legumes
Alfalfa and red clover growers
who are planning to broadcast the
seed into a stand of winter wheal or
barley should be preparing their
seed now. Research and experi
ence have both proven that early
March seeding will give the best
results. It’s the time of year when
the ground freezes and thaws fre
quently, creating a “honeycomb”
condition to the lop soil. This is an
excellent way to give the seeds a
light covering of lop soil. If the
broadcast seeding is made in late
March, this condition may not
prevail.
The seeds should be of lop qual
ity and be innoculatcd with legume
bacteria before seeding.
•'-V v
Center, small meeting room,
9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.; through
Feb. 23. John Rowchl,
757-9657.
Appreciation Dinner for Members
of York Farm Credit Service,
Dover Fire Hall, noon. Also
being held at Eureka Fire Co.,
7:30 p.m. Leah Woodward,
792-3652.
Tuesday, February 23
Pennsylvania Holstein Conven-
(Turn to Page A3l)
To Be Aware of
Alkaline Water
for Pesticides
If your water is alkaline, espe
cially if the pH is 8 or greater, you
may have trouble getting good
results from the pesticide spray
material you are using on crop
land. Water supplies in many areas
have sufficient natural alkalinity to
cause a “breakdown” of certain
pesticides.
This means pest control may be
somewhat less than desirable, or
even non-existent because the
ingredient will be rendered inac
tive before it even reaches the plant
or pest. If the spray is allowed to
stand several hours before spray
ing, as much as 50 percent or more
of the acUvc ingredient may be
decomposed.
Our pesticide specialist tells us
that a pH in the range of 4 to 6 is
recommended for most pesticide
sprays. You can adjust spray solu
tions to this range by buffering
agents. In general, the insecticides
HOW EVEN IS
“GETTING EVEN”?
February 21,1988
Background Scripture:
Matthew 18
Devotional Reading:
1 Corinthians 12:12-26.
Just before Christmas, I saw an
article in the Dallas Morning News
about a new gadget that was being
“marketed for adults.” This gadget
would be installed in your auto
and, whenever another driver com
mitted any kind of offense against
you taking your parking place,
cutting in line ahead of you, taking
up more than just one lane you
could press a button on the gadget
and get the satisfaction of hearing
simulated sounds of cannon fire
and explosions indicating that you
had “zapped” your opponent.
“Don’t get mad,” said the adver
tisement, “get even!”
According to the article, the
company manufacturing this
gadget was recording record sales.
I hope that the gadget proved to be
a marketing disaster. Can you ima
gine the effect upon children, see
ing Daddy or Mommy responding
to a minor irritation with a simu
lated “zap”! Is the step from a
simulated “zap” to a real one all
that far? How much more instruc
tion in “getting even” do our child
ren need?
LOVE’S LIMIT
The desire to “get even” is one
of our greatest human temptations.
Is it something we leam, or are we
bom with it? I think that mostly it
is something we arc taught. We
very early learn that we are
expected to “get even.” That teach
ing of retaliation may come from
our peers, our society, our world.
The movies and television—espe-
arc affected more severely by alka
line water than fungicides or
herbicides.
To Prepare For
Dormant Sprays
Many types of trees arc infested
with various kinds of scale insects.
These pests attach themselves to
the bark and twigs and shrubs and
suck strength from the plant. One
of the best treatments is to apply a
dormant spray oil before the buds
start to open. The dale of the spray
will vary with the weather. How
ever, on many fruit trees and
shrubbery this will be late Febru
ary and early March. The spray
should be applied before the buds
open. In addition, a spray during
May or June while the insect is in
the crawler stage is strongly sug
gested; materials for this spray can
be Sevm or Malalhion. Scale
insects should be controlled the
way is to use a dormant spray.
The Cooperative Extension ser
vice is an affirmative action, equal
opportunity educational
institution.
dally “children’s cartoons”
often teach “getting even” as a way
of life and essential to one’s
“honor.”
Once again we can see just how
radically differentare Jesus’ teach
ings on this subject. Nowhere do
we find Jesus ever suggesting that
we need to “get even” with some
one. Instead, what he teaches is
diametrically opposed to “getting
even.” So, when P. r asks him,
“Lord, how often shall my brother
sin against me, and I forgive him?
As many as seven times?”, Jesus
surprises him by saying. “I do not
say to you seven limes, but seventy
times seven” (Matthew 18-21,22).
Actually, when we think we are
“getting even,” we are simply per
petuating the original wrong.
Thus, when we retaliate against
others, we only think we are “get
ting even.” That is because these
matters are judged, not by our own
standards, but by God’s. It is
assumed that when we retaliate
against someone else, we have
“evened the score.” In reality,
however, God sees our act of reta
liation as the creation of a new debt
and in his sight there >s no “getting
even.”
WHO’S AHEAD?
There is some powerful evi
dence of this in the world today.
Consider the Arab vs. Israeli con
flict and animosity. Both the Arab
and the Israeli regard themselves
as the injur ' parly who needs to
“get even.” Both trace the present
conflict to an act or acts by the
other party. Who is right? Both are
right or no one is right. An Israeli
shoots an Arab because another
Arab stabbed an Israeli. The Arab
attacker, in turn, claims that an
Israeli bulldozed his family dwell
ing. The Israel with the bulldozer
justifies his action with the remem
brance of an attack by Arabs on his
family farm. And so on and so on!
Where did it all begin and where
does it stop? So long as we are dri
ven to “get even,” it will never
stop.
(Based on copyrighted outlines provided by the Commit
tee on (he Uniform Senes and used by permission
Released by Community and Suburban Press)
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