OPINION
Public Relations Challenge
Two out of three newspaper editors from throughout the
country believe that America’s interest in food safety will in
crease during the next five years, according to a recent poll
commissioned by CMF&Z Public Relations, a Young & Rubi
cam company.
The study found that nearly all (95 percent) of the survey re
spondents think food safety is currently an important issue with
the American public. Nine out of ten (87 percent) believe the
issue has become more significant in the past five years, and a
strong majority (65 percent anticipate continued prominence.
The survey identified key newspaper editors’ perceptions
about the importance of food safety, outlined the most import
ant elements of this issue and developed insights regarding the
information provided by key resources to journalists covering
food safety. Additional survey highlights include;
• What Arc The Key Food Safety Issues?: The editors ranked
bacteria in food as the issue of most importance to the Ameri
can people, followed closely by pesticides and drug residues in
food.
• Who Covers Food Safety Issues?: The "food safety beat” is
generally covered by food editors (96 percent), according to the
survey. It also is relatively common for lifestyle editors (78
percent) and health editors (77 percent) to cover food safety is
sues. Editors who cover agriculture (34 percent), business (31
percent) and science/technology (18 percent) ranked signifi
cantly lower on the list.
• Who Are The Best Information Sources?: More than half of
the editors indicated that they receive information on food safe
ty from the following sources: Wire services, government
agencies, consumer groups, universities, agricultural com
modity groups and food manufacturers. The journalists ranked
university information as the most credible, followed by wire
services and government agencies.
• What Type of Information Is Needed?: The editors indicat
ed three types of information are most useful when writing
stories on food safety: (1) information in layman’s terms, (2)
expert sources, and (3) balanced information that addresses
both sides of the issue.
• How Do Food Manufacturers’ Efforts Rate?: Four out of 10
editors (40 percent) feel that food manufacturers are doing a
“good” or “excellent” job when working with food safety is
sues. Although, nearly half (49 percent) of the respondents
gave an “average” ranking to those types of companies.
The survey identified the most pressing food safety issues. In
addition to bacteria, pesticides and drug residues in food, the
editors listed irradiation, genetic engineering and handling con
tamination as the most significant food safety topics. These re
sponses were based on the editor’s perceptions of consumer
interests.
This means that companies and organizations involved in
these areas can anticipate further coverage and continued con
sumer attention. They need to be ready to respond, and better
yet, take a pro-active approach.
Like it or not, food safety issues will continue to receive
media coverage. Complete and accurate information incorpor
ating some or all of the following information is most desired;
• expert, unbiased sources with documentation
• balanced information, that addresses both sides of the issue
, • case study support
• breakthrough technical data and statistics
• public opinion research findings
• graphs and graphics
• local news hooks/story angles
• “how to” information
This issue creates the classic public relations challenge.
Proper action coupled with effective communications can cre
ate a win-win situation for the food industry and for the general
public.
Farm Calendar
| Suiul.n' lul\ I I
Columbia/Luzeme summer picn-
thru July 17.
Wilkes-Barre/Scrantoh Fair,
Pocono Downs, thru July 18.
I ucsd.n. ,|uh I.'
Animal Housing Expo, Lebanon
Fairgrounds, thru July 14.
Landisville Weed Tour/Field Day,
Southeast Field Research Cen
to-, Salunga, 10 a.m.-3:30 p.m.
Pennsylvania Vegetable and Small
Fruit Field Tour, Meat Red
Roof Inn, York, S:3O a.m.
(Turn to Pag* A3O)
To Apply
For Liquid
Fuel Tax Refund
You should have received your
Farmer’s Liquid Fuels Claim Form
by now. This tax refund is avail
able to anyone who uses liquid
fuels in the actual production of
agricultural products.
Filing is done on a fiscal year
basis. Refunds are now available
for the period July 1,1992 to June
30,1993. The claim forms must be
received by the Pennsylvania
Treasury Department by Septem
ber 30. 1993.
In order for the claim to be prop
erly processed, it must be accom
panied by either actual paid
receipts, copies of paid receipts, or
dealer statement showing the num
ber of gallons purchased and ver
ification that state tax had been
paid.
If you did not receive a form,
have any questions, or need assis
tance in filing of claims, contact
Lynne Vergot in the Treasury
Department's Board of Finance
and Revenue at (717) 787-6534.
File now before you forget and
the deadline passes. Remember,
you are only requesting a refund of
your money already paid to
Harrisburg.
To Protect
Wellheads
Water quality is a major issue
facing us.
One of the areas that will have
the greatest impact on under
ground water quality has received
little attention. That is the well
head area.
The wellhead area is the land
area around your well that is
needed to recharge it with water
you use. In this part of Pennsylva
nia, about 12 inches of water is
available to recharge underground
water. This is one acre foot of
water or 324,000 gallons of water
per acre of land.
To determine your wellhead
protection area, calculate the
amount iOf water used from your
well in one year. For a 50-cow
dairy herd this would be 638,750
gallons per year or water from two
acres. For 80,000 laying hens, it
would be 1,460,000 gallons per
year or 4.5 acres.
For the dairy herd, this repre
sents a radius from your well of
Farm Forum
Editor:
I am writing in response to your
editorial regarding the North
American Free Trade Agreement
(NAFTA) which appeared in the
June 26. 1993 issue of Lancaster
Faming.
The American Farm Bureau
Federation and Pennsylvania
Farm Bureau (PFB) support ratifi
(Turn to Pago A3l)
*
radius of 2SO feet.
What type of activities are tak
ing place in this area? Manure stor
age, equipment washing, dead ani
rital disposal, ahd fertilizer storage
are a few examples of possible
land uses.
Based on experiences of the
Rural Clean Water Project, far
mers had the biggest improvement
in well water by changing land use
in their wellhead area.
Now is the time to go to your
well and look at the various activi
ties taking place within ISO to 300
feet of your well and make the
necessary changes.
To Test
Standby Generators
The recent hot weather and
thunderstorms reminds us power
failures may happen at anytime.
Are you ready for them?
Standby generators should be
tested weekly and make sure there
is enough fuel to run them for
extended period of times. Simulate
different kinds of power failures.
Hi (A.VktNU W AllHUO'.t
'sbisils
CHRIST-SHAPED VOID
July 11,1993
Background Scripture:
Colossians 2
Devotional Reading:
Hebrews 10:11-25.
I do not profess to understand
much of the tragedy that oc
curred in Waco at the Branch
Davidiancompound in the early
part of this year. The appeal of
the charismatic leader and his
cult obviously had something to
do with offering people spiritual
assurance. These were people
who felt a sense of emptiness
which he was able to fill—at
least for a while.
What kind of emptiness? Many
people want to be assured that
they are giving themselves to a
system that has the answers to
all their questions and cults usu
ally assure their adherents that
they have those answers. What
they offer their recruits is a be
lief-system that seems to hang
together and make sense. Many
people also are searching to fill
an emotional emptiness. They
feel they need something to make
their lives whole, but they don’t
know what it is until the cult
comes along and offers to fill
that void.
What is a cult? My Random
Language (1967) gives seven
definitions. Two main strains
ruin through these definitions:
(1) a system of rites and ceremo
nies and (2) a bond of personal
devotion to a thing, a person or
ideal. On the face of it, there is
nothing wrong with either of
those. Systems of rites and cer
emonies keep worship from be
ing chaotic and the church at its
best is a bond of fellowship in
common devotion to Christ.
A SUBSTITUTE FOR GOD
This becomes a problem only
when the system or the bond of
devotion usurp the place of the
spiritual power they are meant
to serve. Human beings have
always been tempted to use reli
gion to exert control over spiri
tual forces. This is the basic
appeal of magic and witchcraft
-to manipulate the powers, what
I believe Paul means by “the
elemental spirits of the uni
verse” (Col. 2:8b).
So, it is easy for us to look at
TooIKiT wSTiTlty W Oft
type of failure and ignore other
causes.
Make sure your alarm system is
working and not depending on the
same power source that caused the
failure for operation. The result
would be a nonfunctioning alarm
system.
Also, make sure all fans are run
ning at maximum output Clean
inlets, louvers, and fan blades
while making sure belts are tight
and louvers are opened.
Do not depend on automatic
controls. Make sure someone vis
ually checks to make sure all
mechanical systems are working,
especially going into and out of
tunnel ventilation.
Looking at the investment in
buildings, equipment and animals,
you need to have someone staying
close by and monitoring confine
ment buildings at all times during
hot weather and thunderstorm
season.
Feather Profs Footnote: "The
speed of the leader determines the
rate of the pack”
a group like the Waco Branch
Davidians and see them as a
cult. What is not so easy is to
see the cuitic practices of our
own mainline religious groups.
We all have our ritualistic sys
tems, including those who make
a system of not having any sys
tems. We all encourage a bond
of devotion to a common cause.
But mainline religious groups
can also make their systems
and their bond into ends instead
of means.
SNj
In other words, we all are
tempted to present our answers
and rituals as lh£ — answers
and rituals. That which is first
intended to help us experience
God ends up becoming a substi
tute for God. The rituals and the
bond of fellowship become
more important than the reality
behind them. What we offer is a
certainty that is really not ours
to offer.”
HUMAN TRADITIONS
So it was in Colossae and it
was the reason Paul was writing
that church. Someone in
Colossae was undermining the
church there. We do not know
the specifics, but it is obvious
fronfcPaul’s letter that there was
excessive ritualism, asceticism,
rules and regulations on foods
and holy days, and the worship
of angels. That is why Paul
writes: “See to it that no one
makes a prey of you by philoso
phy and empty deceit, accord
ing to human tradition, accord
ing to the elemental spirits on
the universe, and not according
to Christ” (2:8). “Therefore let
no one pass judgment on you in
questions of food and drink or
with regard to a festival or a
new moon or a sabbath” (2:16).
Somewhere I read, “In
everyone’s heart there is a
Christ-shaped void.” Only
Christ-not our rituals, our sys
tems, our human traditions or
speculative philosophies-can
fill that void in our hearts. As
Paul says, “For in him the whole
fullness of deity dwells bodily,
and you have come to fullness
of life in him...” (2:9). For that
emptiness we all want to fill
only Christ: nothingmore, noth
ing less.
Lancaster Farming
Established 19SS
Published Every Saturday
Ephrata Review Building
1 E. Main St.
Ephrata, PA 17522
by
Lancaster Farming, Inc.
A SMwmm £MwprfM
Robert G. CampbtD G mini Manager
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