AiO-LmcMttr Farming, Saturday, May 30, 1992
OPINION
Basic Nutrition
The National Milk Producers Federation recently teamed up
to meet a serious challenge to milk’s image posed by news sto
ries that most milk contains either too much or too little Vita
min D.
Publication of a study in the New England Journal of Medi
cine claimed that 71 percent of milk and all infant formula
sampled, contained either too much or too little Vitamin D. The
samples were purchased in stores from Maine to Virginia. The
study was prompted by reports of a number of cases of Vitamin
D intoxication that occurred when a single Massachusetts dairy
fortified its milk with 500 times the amount of vitamin D
claimed on its labels.
Both the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the
study’s authors were quick to point out that Vitamin D fortified
milk posed no serious health threat to the public and that people
need have no fear of drinking milk. FDA also pointed out that
the eight cases of hypervitaminosis D reported in the Journal
were the only cases ever reported since milk began being com
monly fortified with Vitamin D in the 1930’5.
The dairy industry and the FDA needs to speak out quickly
to reassure the public that the nation’s milk supply posed no
health threat. We don’t know why a dairy would overdose vita
min D in milk, but we do know that milk “docs a body good.”
And we don’t want to see anything keep consumers from
receiving this basic nutrition for their health.
V
Farm Calendar
Eastern Regional Emu Chapter
Seminar, Eden Resort Hotel,
Lancaster, 9 a.m.
Open Western Horse Show, Fair
Hill Grounds, 9 a.m.
Wayne County Dairy Princess
Pageant, Belmont Fire Hall,
Dairy Day at Three Rivers Sta
Southeast Pennsylvania Twilight
Fruit Growers Meeting, Over
look Orchards, Coplay, 6:30
Dclmarva Chicken Festival and
Chicken Cooking Contest,
Salisbury, Md., thru June 7.
World Pork Expo, lowa Slate Fair
grounds, Des Moines, thru June
7.
Ag Issues Breakfast Meeting,
Southern Market Center, Lan
caster. 7:30 a.m.-9 a.m.
Saturday, June 6
Junior Livestock Day, Penn State
Meats Laboratory, 7 p.m.-9
p.m.
Maryland and Open English Horse
Show, Hopewell Training Cen
ter, 9 a.m.
Urban Forestry Workshop, Berks
Co. Ag Center, Lcesport, 9
a.m.-3;30 p.m.
Pa. Limousin Association Field
Day, Fayette County Fair
grounds, Uniontown, thru June
7.
Chester County Dairy Princess
Pageant, Herr’s Tourist Center,
Nottingham, 7:30 p.m.
Franklin County 4-H Beef Club
4-H Beef Spring Preview
Show, Shippensburg
Fairgrounds.
Antique Engine Tractor and Toy
Club annual show, Kempton
Community Center, thru July 7.
Selecting Trees for Community
Investment. Berks County
Agricultural Center, Ledsport,
Hobbes Retirement Open House,
Shadow Brook Inn & Resort,
Tunkharmock, 1:30 p.m.-4;30
p.m.
Poultry Management and Health
Seminar, Kreider Dariy Farms
(Turn to Pago A 23)
Farm Forum
L
On June 15,1992 all eyes in the
Dairy Industry will be focused on
Alexandria, Va. This is the day the
United States Department of Agri
culture (U.S.D.A.) will commence
a national dairy hearing to receive
testimony from interested parties
regarding the possibility of an
alternative basic pricing formula
to the Minnesota-Wisconsin
(M-W) price series.
The public hearing is dictated
by the 1990 Farm Bill.
Currently the U.S.D.A. uses the
M-W price as the minimum price
for milk under all federal milk
orders. The M-W price is an aver
age of prices paid for manufactur
ing grade milk by plants in Minne
sota and Wisconsin that manufac
tures butter, nonfat dry milk and
cheese. In my opinion, the M-W
price is responsible for confusing
consumers, giving manufacturing
handlers nightmares and sends
countless numbers of dairy far
mers into extinction.
It’s time for a change! In many
areas, dairy farmers are clamoring
for a change. For over 25 years we
have been urging a milk formula
that would relate to the actual cost
of producing milk in the United
Stales. The U.S.D.A. publishes
To Improve
Herbicide Effectiveness
The effectiveness of a weed
control program may be improved
by following five easy steps:
1. Match the control program,
including the herbicide, to the
weed problems in the field.
2. Plant and apply
preemeigence herbicides as soon
after the last tillage operation as
possible. Many herbicides are only
effective on germinating seeds and
will not control weeds after they
have germinated.
3. Use a rotary hoe or spike
tooth harrow to incorporate herbi
cides if rain is not received within
5 to 7 days.
4. Take advantage of cultivation
to control escape weeds whenever
possible.
S. Develop realistic goals for the
weed control program. Crops will
tolerate some weeds with little or
no impact on yields. However,
watch for escape weeds which
could become problems in the
future.
To Follow
Food Safety Debate
This past week marked a new
round of food safety issues. A
General Accounting Office report
on eggbome Salmonella was very
critical of how governmental agen
cies was dealing with this problem.
The report stated 12 federal
agencies and departments carry
the average cost of producing milk
within several different regions
across the U.S. They also publish
a national average cost of
production.
In addition several lending
institutions such as the Springfield
Bank for Cooperative, have deve
loped reliable cost of production
figures. Actually, many of these
formulas are coming significantly
closer together on the average cost
of producing milk.
Some people will tell you that
dairy prices are moving up, so
consequently the dairy crisis has
been rested. Don’t believe it!
Some people will say - dairy far
mers just can’t have a price that
covers the production cost. Ask
them, why not??
Some people will say -- dairy
farmers must utilize to a fuller
degree the benefits of technology.
Technology is being utilized,
that’s why the average cost of pro
duction is around $14.50 per cwt.
and not $2O.
The people who say all the
above should take a survey of feed
de rs, machine dealers, supply
dealers and others that deal with
dairy fanners. Ask these people
(Turn to Pago A 22)
out responsibilities under 3S diffe
rent laws related to food safety.
The report called forbctter coordi
nation and cooperation between
agencies.
A model program is being deve
loped for the egg industry to keep
eggs contaminated with Salmonel
la off the market The Food and
Drug Administration will be tak
ing a more active role in food safe
ty issues. As fanners, you will be.
under constant pressure to produce
food with no harmful bacterial
contamination.
Also, this week the government
gave the approval to market food
produced from new developments
in biotechnology. People are
becoming mote aware of certain
aspects of their food. Agriculture
will need to be able to respond
quickly with facts and information
on how food is produced and what
is being done to insure product
wholesomeness.
The media and consumer groups
are doing independent studies on
food safety. Tliis makes it very
important we arc doing the best job
possible.
Our consumers are requiring all
food be produced by best manage
ment practices. This includes
observing drug withdrawal times.
WHAT ARE YOU
WAITING FOR
May 31, 1992
Background Scriptures 2
Peter 3:3-14*
Devotional Reading: Isaiah
55:1-13.
If you read carefully the two let
ters attributed to Peter, you may
note that there is a decided shift
between the two when it comes to
the apocalyptic end of the world.
In I Peter 4:7, he says: "The end of
all things is at hand..." and much
of the letter is predicated on the
writer’s conviction that Christ's
return is immanent.
When we get to 2 Peter, howev
er, we see that the writer now
regards the second coming as
delayed, at least from a human
perspective. In fact, in 2 Peter the
writer is acknowledging that the
kingdom has been delayed and he
is aware of the gospel's critics:
"...you must understand this, that
scoffers will come in the last days
with scoffing... and saying,
'Where is the promise of His com
ing?"' (3:3,4). He goes on to chal
lenge them to take the long-term
viewpoint: "...do not ignore this
one fact, beloved, that with the
Lord one day is as a thousand
years, and a thousand years as one
day..." (3:8).
Paul, Too
The Apostle Paul had pretty
much the same experience. In his
early letters, he regarded Christ's
return as immanent, but, by the
time he wrote his last letters, it is
evident that he was no longer
looking for it in the present
moment The early disciples of
Jesus learned that as Christ had
suggested to them when he
walked with them, if there is a
timetable for the great fulfillment
of God's promise, it is known only
to him. The most Important thing
for Christian discipleship is not
knowing the divine timetable, but
living in such a way that
er it comes, we will have lived and
died in harmony with God's plan
using pesticides at proper rates,
maintaining a clean environment,
and keeping food refrigerated.
Lactobacillus
Less Effective In
Treating Mastitis
Researchers at Ohio State Uni
versity compared the effectiveness
of a lactobacillus preparation with
that of an antibiotic on the cure rate
of clinical mastitis.
The lactobacillus preparation
cured 35.3 percent of die infected
quarters compared to 57.7 percent
for the antibiotic treatment The
biggest difference was in the cure
rate of gram negative or coliform
type bacteria.
The cure rate for lactobacillus
was zero compared to 61. S percent
for the antibiotic. The antibiotic
used in this trail was cephapirin.
Somatic cell count levels in the
milk was used to determine the
degree of infection in the udder.
Fourteen days after treatment, the
cell counts remained unchanged
for the lactobacillus treated quar
ters, where cell counts were
reduced in quarters treated with
cerphapirin.
Feather Profs Footnote:
"Everything starts as somebody’s
daydream" Larry Niven.
and purpose.
Lots of people pick scripture
texts here and there to substantiate
their interpretation ot the time and
circumstances of Christ's return in
glory, but, if you examine every
thing the Bible says about the ful
fillment of God's plan, you cannot
escape the conclusion that, apart
from the conviction that the prom
ise will be fulfilled, the time, place
and circumstances cannot be
deduced from the scriptures. To be
exact, you must focus on some
scriptures and ignore others.
Obviously, God did not intod .to (J
give us die blueprints.
A "New Us"
The writer of 2 Peter says, "But
according to his promise we wait
for new heavens and a new earth
in which righteousness dwells"
(3:13). Does that mean that the
present earth and universe will be
replaced with something else? Or
is this a spiritual rather than factu
al representation of the fulfillment
of his promises? Will there be a
great Armageddon, as Revelation
suggests or is that too just figura
tive rather-than literal language?
My own answer is: I don't know. I
don’t know what form the "new
heavens" and the "new earth" will
take.
But what I do know is the very
same thing that 2 Peter is trying to
get across: if there is to some day
be "new heavens" and a "new
earth," what is required here and
now is a "new us. " We do not
know and cannot know the details
of God's plan, but what we do
know is that, while we wait, we
are to live in a "new" way. "There
fore, beloved, since you wait for
these, be zealous to be found by
Him without spot or blemish, and
at peace" (3:14).
That's really all we have to
know about God's plan. It is more
than endugh!
Lancaster Farming
Established 1955
Published Every Saturday
Ephrata Review Building
1 E. Main St
Ephrata, PA 17522
by
Lancaster Farming, Inc.
A SMnrmn Enlwpnb*
Robert G. Campbell General Manager
Everett R. Newswanger Managing Editor
Ctrrrlthl )Bt * LoiuMr Ftritrinf