ASO-Uncasttr Hanning, Saturday, December 9, 1995
(Continued from Pago All)
cans a wholesome food supply,
and we do our part to make sure
that it is, but the way we get paid
for our hard work is way behind
the times.
Way back in 1915 and after
World War I there was trouble in
the industry: then the Department
of Agriculture stepped in to protect
the inhabitants of America. To
protect everyone’s health and safe
ty and to provide an abundance of
good food.
The way they did this was to
give the cooperatives the authority
to speak in the best interest of the
producers of milk, and to handle
the milk in such a way as the coun
try needed. They did this by deem
ing them the power of voting for
the producers of milk.
Granted, back then no one had
telephones or even a car so the co
ops helped the producers and at the
same time helped the inhabitants in
supplying them with an abundant
supply of wholesome food. As
time went on the co-ops got bigger
and stronger and always provided
money to their producers but also
discovered many by-products of
milk and also marketed them to
make money for the dairies.'
The problem we have today is
not with the government but with
what the co-ops are letting the gov
ernment believe. I personally feel
that we have lost our say as co-op
members. The way we get paid
suits them and the handlers and the
processors and the retailers fine, as
long as we keep providing them
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Farm Forum ❖
with the raw products.
We have federal orders each
one is supposed to handle milk for
the people in each marketing area
and to always provide an adequate
supply of wholesome products by
paying the producers a good mark
et price for all the products that
they sell. Today we have four clas
ses of milk in our federal order.
Class #1 is the fluid class, class #2
includes cream and some cheese,
class #3 is for ice cream and cot
tage cheese, and class #3A for
powder to sell world-wide.
In order to change anything in
our order you have to have a
majority vote by only the produc
ers of the milk involved. In 1989
we in Order 2 had two classes of
milk: #1 fluid, #2 all other pro
ducts. Each one was paid a diffe
rent amount and always paid but,
with an average the more numbers
you have to average the lower the
score if you don’t increase the
starting price.
The producers now discovered
that we have too many classes of
milk which lowered our over-all
milk price but now we can’t
change it, and we are losing too
many farms.
Please understand that 25 large
co-ops handle 80 percent of all the
milk in this country today and they
tell us that all the producers are
satisfied with their price. I am ask
ing from my heart to please do a
survey for yourself and truly, see
the plight of the farmers, we don’t
ask for much and we can do a lot
with little, but- not if it costs us
more money to p.oduce it than we
are getting back and are losing our
farms, our land and our spirits.
Please, the money is already
being made on the milk sold today
without any price supports, but the
co-ops are taking more than their
share. I feel getting more efficient
is good but the reason they are
keeping the price down to us is so
we the few farmers that are left will
make up for the lost producers. But
we are working on losing our equi
ty and our health and our spirit
because we cannot keep up this
pace for much longer.
If you could help us amend the
agricultural marketing laws to suit
us we will always produce enough
milk for you forever.
Also if you have large herds of
cattle in any given area you quick
ly mess up your environment We
in the mountains of Pennsylvania
have a unique ecosystem and
always try not to mess up our land.
We handle our waste well and
return the nutrients back to the soil
so it will help make more milk in
the future.
Thank you.for taking the time to
read this, Mr. President, and may
God bless you and your family.
Peter A. Seman
Thompson
Editor:
The dairy farmers of this coun
try owe Congressman Gerald Sol
omon (R-NY) a great deal of grati
tude for the vitally important role
he has played in fending off total
and immediate deregulation of the
dairy industry.
Through his leadership efforts
during the recent debates of the
Budget Reconciliation Confer
ence Committee, Congressman
Solomon was instrumental in
preserving—for now—the Feder
al Milk Marketing Order System,
which is crucial to dairy farming.
Without the Federal Order Sys
tem, chaotic milk marketing con
ditions would have emerged that
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ultimately would have harmed far
mers financially to the tune of
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While current rumblings in
Washington indicate that the fed
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over. Congressman Solomon must
be commended for being a strong
and loyal friend to dairy farmers
and be encouraged to continue his
diligent efforts in representing our
Advertising/News Deadlines
For Holiday, Farm Show Issues
The Christmas and New Year holidays and the annual
Farm Show issue are fast approaching. This means many of
the advertising and news deadlines for Lancaster Fanning
will need to be early to accommodate the publication of the
December 23,30, and January 6 issues. Many of these dead*
lines are the week prior to the week of publication.
The deadlines are as follows:
December 23rd Issue
Public Sale Ads Noon, Monday 12/18.
All Other Deadlines On Normal Schedule.
December 30th Issue
Office Closed Christinas Monday/1/25.
Public Sale Ads 5 p.m., Friday, 12/22
Mailbox Markets 5 p.m., Friday, 12/22.
General News Noon, Thursday, 12/28.
Classified Section C Ads S p.m. Wednesday, 12/27.
Ail Other Classifieds 9 a.m., Thursday, 12/28.
January 6 , 1996 Farm Show Issue
Office Closed New Year’s Day —. Monday, 1/1.
Public Sale Ads 4 p.m., Friday, 12/22.
Mailbox Markets 5 p.m., Friday, 12/22.
General News Noon, Wednesday, 1/3.
Classified Section C Ads 5 p.m., Tuesday, 1/2.
Ail Other Classifieds 9 a.m., Wednesday, 1/3.
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As president and chairman of
Dairylea Cooperative Inc., a milk
marketing cooperative with more
than 2,500 farmer-members in the
Northeast, I say thank you to con
gressman Solomon and wish him
continued success in Washington.
Dairylea Cooperative Inc.
Clyde E. Rutherford
President and Chairman
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