A24-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, January 3, T 998 1997 Ends As Perplexing Year For Producers (Continued from Page A 1) Land O’Lakes), probably the big gest story of the year was the avian influenza (A. 1.) outbreak which caused great concern for producers in the state. In mid-May. a 75-square-mile quarantine zone was instituted at the request of the industry to con trol the outbreak of a non pathogen ic form of A.I. virus. In mid-June, Gov. Tom Ridge authorized the state Department of Agriculture to spend $5 million,to fight avian influenza. At the end of July of 1997, it was announced by the state dial the poultry shows were cancelled at this year’s Farm Show. Fortunately, relying on past experience, the outbreak was suc cessfully controlled, and only 1.024 million birds were destroy ed. Sixteen premises were affected, including two in Lebanon and 14 in Lancaster. The quaran tine was officially lifted Nov. 10. Yet, mirroring a seesaw, here today and gone-tomorrow type of year, on Dec. 17 it was announced that a 24,800-bird turkey flock in northern Lancaster County was gr, nr Several press conferences were scheduled during the year to disseminate Information about the spread of a non pathogenlc form of avian Influenza virus. This one In May was held to announce to new flocks Identified with the virus in the quarantine zone In northern Lancaster County. From left, John Martin, chair of the Poultry Health Committee of the Pennsylvania Poultry Federation; John Hoffman, executive director of the Pennsylvania Poultry Federation; Walter N. Peechatka, executive deputy agriculture secret ary; and Dr. Shetbyn Ostrich, acting director of the bureau of animal health and diagnostic services and state veterina rian. As a resu It of the outbreak, the Northeast Poultry Show was cancelled, in addition to poultry shows at the state Farm Show. Farmland preservation programs In Lancaster County and throughout the state recorded a “banner” year. At the Trust’s annual picnic held at Greystone Manner Farms In mid-September are, standing from left to right, Karen M. Weiss, director of land preservation for the Trust; Melissa Cauler, Trust development assistant; and Pip Ravegum, farm manager. infected with the virus, and con cerns once again resurfaced. But because of persistent efforts to maintain biosecurity, many pro ducers weathered the storm and the poultry industry continues to revi talize itself in the state. In this back-and-forth year of biotechnical applications in clon ing, tobacco growing and harvest challenges, about the requested resignation of then-Secretary of Agriculture Charles Brosius of West Chester, there was the emerging success stories of farm land preservation, about the state Grange conducting a historic meeting in Reading, and other events that kept producers optimis tic about the future of agriculture. Political Changes There were several major politi cal events involving those repre senting Pennsylvania agriculture that were much talked about within the community, though perhaps didn’t much impact the general public’s opinion of the industry as a whole. One happened in the spring. Gov. Tom Ridge requested the res ignation of mushroom farmer Charles Brosius of West Chester, then secretary of agriculture. The move resulted in an out pouring of comment and widely expressed disappointment from all areas of agriculture. Brosius had endeared himself to the constituen cy and to the legislature. Ridge explained that he wanted someone else to move the state Department of Agriculture in a new direction. Not long after, former and retired Republican leader of the state House of Representatives, Samuel Hayes Jr., accepted the position as state secretary of agri culture. Hayes noted he wants to make the Pennsylvania Depart ment of Agriculture a “blue rib bon” agency. The change in leadership pre sented some changes in function and operation. While Brosius con tinues to be widely admired for his diplomacy and bearing as secret ary, Hayes has come on strongly as an advocate for expanding Pen nsylvania’s agricultural base, fos tering creativity and effectiveness and providing leadership with more political savvy and interna tional experience and understanding. In late February last year, mem bers of the Land O’Lakes Cooperative approved a plan to merge with the Atlantic Dairy Cooperative. The merger became effective April 1. In other merger news, PennAg and Pennsylvania Agronomic Products Association announced a merger in mid-June 1997. The Pennsylvania State Grange celebrated its 125 th anniversary during the year, passing a torch from one subordinate Grange to another across the stale, Olympic - style, ending with the return of the torch to state Master William Steel during a historic pageant in Reading. Early in October, Samuel Hayes Jr., state secretary of agriculture, signed and authorized the slate’s first official nutrient management plan on tbe44S-acre beef finishing operation, Greystone Manor Farms, located along Rt 272. The event was significant because it marks the culmination of more than a decade of effort by many people to establish and implement a statewide nutrient management law. Samuel Hayes Jr., Pennsylvania Secretary of Agriculture, at right, noted he warns to make the Pennsylvania Depart* ment of Agriculture a “blue ribbon” agency. A meeting of the Pennsylania Council of Farm Organizations was held early In June at which Hayes spoke. With him Is Earl Fink, president of the Council. Greystone Manor Farms, in mid-September, preserved prime farmland at the Lancaster Farm land Trust’s annual picnic, held at the farm. The Pennsylvania Farm Bureau held a news conference mid-April at the dairy farm of Ronald Kopp in Middletown. The conference was called to promote legislation to place at least a fivc-ccnt deposit on bottles and cans in the state. A three-part bottle bill series in Lancaster Farming examined the challenges farmers face from the bottles dumped on their property, the damages the trash causes, and ways in which states such as Ore gon successfully enacted bottle bill legislation. Technological Breakthroughs The general population became aware of tome of the biotechnical applications occurring in agricul ture and the pharmaceutical indus tries. In a historic event, a lamb was cloned directly from its parent Cloning has almost become an everyday subject in agriculture. But die news about the lamb was significant because it showed the actual application of the theory of using adult genetic material to clone genetically identical offspring. The announcement of the clone (it took many attempts to achieve it) began a somewhat short-lived international debate about the use of the technology. Soybean producers began mak ing use of major herbicide resistant varieties. Applications for genetic control, rather than chemical control, of plant pests were coming to fruition. The entire industry is switching gradually to genetically strong strains of plants that can protect themselves from insect pressure, disease, and drought—almost, in a sense, “evolving” away from the use of strictly chemical controls. Also, the Food and Drug Admi nistration early in December approved irradiation of meat pro ducts for controlling disease causing microorganisms. The approval applies to fresh and fro zen red meats such as beef, lamb, and pork, and joins ranks with pre viously approved vegetables and fruits. One FDA commissioner noted that irradiation of meat could pro vide consumers with another toed to control food-home disease. Precision agricultural took were demonstrated at the annual Ag Progress Days in Rockspring. More crop growers are using satel lite record-keeping to track ele ments of their crops to improve pesticide and fertilizer use. Also, the swine industry is mak ing huge strides toward the use of artificial insemination (AI) on their herds. It won’t be long before a half of all breeders use AI exclusively. Farmland Preservation In October, ona 1,350-acre fam ily farm in Nazareth, on the farm of the Willard Setzer family, the state government and ag leadership rec ognized the milestone of breaking the 100,000 th acre mark in farm land preservation. In addition. Gov. Tom Ridge signed an executive order that calls for continued cooperation between state and local agencies to protect farmland through the state’s farm land preservation program, which secures development rights on that property. Ridge noted that his cider is to direct state agencies to actively seek ways to preserve the state’s prime agricultural land, rather than to take a passive role. The Setzer location was chosen because, when the family sold the development rights on a 273-acre tract of the farm for Northampton county for $1.09 million, the (Turn to P«fl« A2S)
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