AlO-Lancaster Fanning, Saturday, June 2,1990
OPINION
You’ll Want This Quality
Assurance Program
The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) and the
American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) are to be
commended for their efforts to implement a national milk and
dairy beef quality assurance program. John Adams, director of
milk safely and animal health, NMPF, and Dr. Bill Van Dresser,
director government relations division, AVMA headed the joint
committee that developed protocol and materials.
In farmer terms, the program supplies the guidelines and
checklist so that milk producers and veterinarians can reduce
potential animal drug residue violations and assure the quality
milk and meat that leave the farm.
The checklist includes points under preventive health man
agement, FDA approved drugs, farmer/veterinarian relation
ships, labels, proper storage and adminstration of drugs and
treatments records. Proper on-farm testing capabilites are also
covered.
The ultimate objective is to demonstrate to regulatory agen
cies, the public, processors and packers that the dairy industry is
dedicated to producing safe and high quality milk and meat.
This program will involve extension educators, veterinarians,
state and federal regulatory officials, milk co-ops, packers, pro
cessors, animal drug manufacturers and other animal industry
organizations. The program is directed primarily toward the
approximately 150,000 dairy producers and 5,000 veterinarians
who work with them.
The on-farm check list, to be used jointly by both milk pro
ducers and veterinarians, will be posted in the milk house as
documentary evidence that safe drug use procedures are in
effect. Implementing the quality control procedures may also
help avoid potential loss of market, legal action and regulatory
action resulting from inadvertent violations.
If you are a dairy farmer, you’ll want to get this program in
operation on your farm this fall when it becomes available.
Farm Calendar
Cecil Co. Farm Show, Western,
Fairhill Grounds, 9:00 a.m.
Washington Co. Sheep & Wool
Field Day, Washington Fair
grounds, 8:00 a.m., thru June 3.
Bradford Co. Dairy Festival,
Athens. Pa.
J. rrtk I
Sunday, June 3
Washington Co. Sheep & Wool
Field Day, Washington Fair-
SjroundSjlFOOajn^^^^^
Elk Co./Fox Township Ag Securi
ty Area public meeting, Fox
Township Community Build
Lancaster Co. Plant Disease Clin
ic, Lancaster Farm and Home
Center, 7:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m.
S.E. Pa. Twilight Fruit Growers
meeting, Robert Dunn and
Sons, New Ringgold, Pa., 6:30
Pa. Rabbit Conference, June 6-9,
Inncaster Farming
Established 19SS
Published Every Saturday
Ephrata Review Building
1 E. Main St.
Ephrata, PA 17522
by
Lancaster Farming, Inc.
A Sltlnrmn Enf.pritt
Robert G Campbell General Manager
Everett R. Newswanger Managing Editor
9cyHqM 1M by LmcMbr FatmHf
Montgomery Co. Creamery
(Penn State Extension).
Berks Co. 4-H Center Get-
Acquaintcd Program, 4-H Ccn-
Christmas tree shearing demo and
field tour, Jim Bella’s farm,
Dclmarva Chicken Festival and
Cooking Contest, Easton, Md.,
thru June 9.
Dairy forage testing and ration
Ijudding^learfield^^^^^
Delmarva Chicken Festival and
Cooking Contest, Easton, Md.
Northeast Ohio Dairy Goat Asso
ciation Annual Show, Ran
dolph Fairgrounds, Randolph,
Ohio, thru June 10.
fW ■
Sunday. June 10
Northeast Ohio Dairy Goat Asso
ciation Annual Show, Ran
dolph Fairgrounds, Randolph,
Ohio.
(Turn to Page A 3 5)
MM Ml THIS) IceCKfcANV
I9GREA
OOR Ml UK PRO
SORE DO A '
DONTTHEV
eq /Ex
gn JEe
' — l EU
'^d : k
. srm
NOW IS
THE TIME
By Jay Irwin
Lancaster County
Agricultural Agent
To Be Aware
Of Storm Safety
Spring is a time to savor -- and
also a time to beware when Nature
casts aside a gentle way and
unleashes deadly forces. Though
lightning, wind and floods fre
quently destroy life and property,
you can do much to avoid being a
victim of weather’s fury.
When a thunderstorm
approaches, avoid lone trees,
small metal buildings, fences and
high ground. Get out of the water
if swimming or boating. Find
refuge in a substantial building,
motor vehicle or tractor cab. Don’t
ignore forecasts of severe weather
because they are correct a majori
ty of the time. It’s also a good idea
to safeguard your house and build
ing with a properly installed,
approved lightning protection sys
tem and inspect it annually.
Don’t take chances, take safety.
To Properly
Dispose Of
Pesticide Containers
At this time of year, fanners
and homeowners are faced with
the problem of what to do with
empty pesticide containers.
According to Jeffrey Stoltzfus,
Nutrient Management Agent, if
they are disposed of incorrectly,
the containers may be a hazard to
children, pets, wildlife and
groundwater. Leftover pesticides
which are not being kept for future
use should be emptied into the
sprayer and sprayed on the field
according to labeled rates. Dump
ing pesticides and rinse water “out
behind the bam” increases the
chances of a chemical leaching
into the groundwater.
Empty pesticide containers
should be rinsed three times with
the rinse water being dumped
back into the sprayer. Holes
should then be punched into the
container to prevent future use.
Clean containers can then be bur
ied or taken to an approved
landfill.
Pesticides which are being kept
for future use should be stored in
the original container with the
original label. Pesticide should be
kept in a dry area out of reach of
children and pets. Always read
and follow label directions for use
of and storage of pesticides.
To Prepare
Grain Bins
We are approaching barley
harvest season with wheat not far
behind, so I would like to remind
our grain producers that now is a
good time to clean up your grain
bins in preparation to harvest.
First, clean out all the old grain,
sweep down all the sidewalls and
floors making sure to remove old
grain lodged in the cracks.
Next, spray the floor and walk
with a residual insecticide.
Malathion and Methoxychlor are
still very effective -- follow the
label for directions. Finally, pre
vent birds and rodents from enter
ing the bins. Repair holes with
metal or other rat-proofing mater
ials. Clean up all spilled grain
around the bin to discourage the
various pests from the area.
To Use
Respirators
A great many different types of
chemicals and pesticides are used
on farms today. This includes
WHAT’S THE GOOD
OF BEING GOOD?
June 3,1990
Background Scripture:
Psalms 1
Devotional Reading:
Matthew 5:1-12,
“Good sermon on righteous
ness, Reverend,” said the par
ishioner, “but what was the bot
tom line?” “I beg your pardon?”
the perplexed pastor replied. “The
bottom line” the man repeated,
“how does morality pay off...for
us?”
There are a lot of passages in
the Bible that suggest that righte
ousness brings material rewards.
“Blessed is the man who walks not
in the counsel of the wicked...”
promises the first Psalm (1:1).
And what is the nature of this bles
sedness'? “In all that he does he
prospers,” (1:3), answers the
Psalmist.
If the “good” will “prosper,”
what of the “wicked”? Says the
Psalmist; “The way of the wicked
will perish” (1:6). This kind of
thinking dominated much of the
Old Testament. If a persons pros
pered, it was assumed that it was
because they were righteous. Con
versely, if a person suffered, it was
supposed that the cause was
unrighteousness. Job’s friends
assumed that he had done some
thing wrong to bring himself to
such a stale of ruin and suffering.
And today it is not uncommon for
someone to ask me, “What did I
do to deserve this?” So, does mor
ality pay off? If I manage to live a
very good life, how will it affect
my bank statement and income
tax?
DO MORALS PAY?
Actually, morality often does
pay off materially. Alexis dc Toc
queville, touring the USA more
r OCc 4 —«-
t *
CD
CO
CD
EH)
mixing, handling and applying the
various materials. We urge far
mers to invest in respirators to
meet safety measures under
today’s farming procedures.
These are needed for handling and
applying various spray materials,
and when using solvents that give
off their fumes.
In addition, farmers working in
dusty places, in manure storage
tanks, and in silos would wear one
of the protective devices. Dusts,
molds and fumes are hard on lungs
and require protection to reduce
injury. The canister type respira
tors are suggested because they
cover the entire face. Don’t
expose yourself to permanent lung
injury when protection is avail
able. Contact your local Lung
Association for more information
on protecting your lungs.
The Penn State Cooperative
Extension is an affirmative action,
equal opportunity educational
institution.
than a century ago, observed: “I
sought for the greatness and
genius of America... Not until I
went to the churches of America,
and heard her pulpits aflame with
righteousness, did I understand
the secret of her genius and power.
America is great because she is
good, and if America ever ceases
to be good, America will cease to
be great.”
Many people I have known
have become prosperous because
they have attempted to live by the
golden rule and that in itself has
attracted all kinds of wellbeing to
them. We all like to deal with the
honest, upright person. For the
most part, we avoid merchants and
professionals of dubious integrity
(with the possible exception of
choosing a divorce lawyer!)
JUST A BONUS
Material gain, however, is not
the bottom-line of righteousness.
It is merely a bonus that is some
times thrown in. For often, righte
ous people do not prosper.
Sometimes —far too often,
probably—crime does pay. But
this is not anything new, for long
before the coming of Christ peo
ple have wanted to know why the
wicked prosper. The book of Job
was written specifically to demon
strate that a righteous person may
suffer every bit as much or more
than the unrighteous person. And
the theme of the four gospels is
that the most righteous man ever
suffered and died unjustly.
So the real pay-off to righteous
ness, the only one on which you
can depend, is within. Morality is
“right,” not because someone says
it is, but because in the long run it
produces “good” in the person, in
the society and the world. Morali
ty pays off in the one place that
really counts: in our own souls.
Cicero said “Virtue is its own
reward” and as Francois de La
Rochefoucauld observed, “Virtue
is to the soul what health is to the
body.” I’ve never known anyone
who regretted that he or she had
lived too righteously.
And that’s the bottom line on
what’s the good of being good.
(Based on copyrighted Outlines produced by
the Committee on the Uniform Senes and used
by permission Released by Community & Sub
urban Press)