Producers, Retailers Must Work Together (Continued from Peg* A3l) into a concrete J-bunk for the cattle. In the bam, four pens hold about 100 head. Compared to the bank bam, there is a lot more room for cattle and operators. Dan McFarland, Pom State ag engineer and moderator of the pro ducer panel, noted that the Edwin Hoover farm in Ephrata built an addition to a bank bam, measuring 100 foot wide and extending out to about 54 feet The addition accom modates the 200 head of cattle that Hoover finishes per year. Three pens are supplied by a belt feeder. The facility has an open ridge for ventilation. McFarland examined some of the basics needed by producers who intend to expand their facili ties as part of die Cattle Feeder’s Day. The chairman of the Penn State University animal Housing Committee spoke about the need to provide adequate cattle space and ventilation. Marketing Trends Jim Johnson, with the feeder calf marketing program at die Vir ginia Cattlemen’s Association, spoke about the marketing efforts of the association, which handles 150,000 head per year. "panm Supply ' )’» ««ip e * See fSUREEj working parlor display!! Grade 5 Hex and Carriage Bolts $ QQ ■99 lb. V'v red DARE gate handle uHH Op&UH> Sufafily Shippensburg 800-872-7478 Elizabethtown 800-872-7478 «717 367-1221 The association, established in' 1953, markets the standard 50,000-pound tractor-trailer loads toa variety of buyers. The seasonal business relies on advanced pur chasing. Contracting is something the association will be looking at in yean to come. When producers buy loads erf the feeder cattle, Johnson indi cated they need to know the following; • What vaccinations the cattle have had. • How die cattle will perform in the feedlot • How well the cattle will hang on the rail. The biggest problem facing pro ducers and the industry, the cattle men's representative noted, is the lack of “shared information.” For competitive or other reasons, “no one wants to tell anybody how their cattle did,” he said. “If we want to make any advancements in the industry, folks, we have to tell each other how our catde are doing,” Johnson said. Johnson spoke about the new buzzword —“alliances” and what they’ll mean to the industry. There are different types of alliances: company-driven and producer-driven. The producer- Gllmour insulated water nozzle driven alliances work to maintain producer independence and decision-making. Hank Maxey, feeder calf pro ducer from Chatham, Va.. sells calves from his 230-cow Angus herd near the North Carolina line. They use proven AI sires QA to V* Angus) and grow about ISO acres of tobacco. The whole goal of their Angus program is provide a cow that will work at home to provide a steer for producers “that will work in the industry,” said Maxey. In the past, the farm made use of proven Angus bulls. But in the past 10 years, the company has switched to AI-proven Angus bulls. The carcass EPDs on the sines show a wide array of impor tant genetic data, including their prospective carcass weights, year ling weight, and other information. This data can go a long way to allow consistency in die feeder herd so they will “feed, grow, look, and kill the same,” said Maxey. “I hope that’s what we are all looking at" It’s important for the producer too know the genetics of the feeder calves they buy and how they will feed and cut 1998 Projections While 1997 had the third largest Victory 2.5 Gal. Footbath Concentrate Victory 55 Gal. $4 OQ Footbath Concentrate fcfcirVa I I Ames 4-tine fork r 'SURGE, U.S. com erdp on record at 9.37 billion bushels and the largest soy bean harvest at 2.73 billion bushels, carryovers this year will be dangerously small. Yet animal production units are expected to increase, even with the projected grain carryover of 900 million bushels as of Sept 1 this year. That equates to about a five week supply of grain for all industries. The scary part it will take 2SO million more bushels of com just to feed the amount of additional animal units projected for die year, according to H. Louis Moore, Penn State economist, at the Cattle Feeder’s Day. Moore provided his economic forecast to the feeders at the day long conference at the Farm and Home Center. Although the country is exper iencing the seventh year of con tinued economic growth without recession, and consumer confi dence is up and unemployment is at near-ideal conditions (“every body who wants a job has one,” Moore said), there are some nega tive aspects to the economy. One is the Asian financial crisis, which could have big impact on the U.S., hurting export markets in general. Consumer debt, especially credit *63?° Bio Vet s 4si 9 ° New improved STRESS CAPSULE. Concentrated vitamins, chelated trace minerals and lactic acid producing bacteria to get cattle started on feed faster. Gener-Cap for adult cattle. February 7, 1998*637 card debt, continues to rise. And how long can the growth continue? Of the billions of bushels of com produced in 1997, 5.63 billion goes to feed, 1.77 to food and alco hol uses, and 1.93 goes to exports. However, production is not increasing enough to match uses, Moore noted. Wheat carryover will be 6SS million bushels and soybeans about 2SS million bushels. Moore noted that if the El Nino weather phenomenon produces a wet spring and a dry summer, “we’re in big trouble,” because carryovers could drop drastically. U.S. beef inventory before Jan. 11998 was 34.27 million, continu ing a trend of decreasing numbers. Total cow (including dairy and beef) numbered 108.8 million head, and numbers will show a further drop in 1998, Moore indicated. Beef cow inventory as of July 1 last year was 34.7 million head. The calf inventory will continue to drop during the next several years. The country exports about two billion pounds of beef and imports about 2.6 billion pounds. We’re closing the gap. he noted. However, we impart no poultry pro ducts. About 4.7 S bil lion pounds of broilers, or about 16-18 percent of total production, goes to exports. Turkey is exported to the tune of S7S million pounds per year, mostly dark meat to Russia and China. Of the total U.S. meat production, beef will decrease by 2 percent at 24.8 billion pounds. Pork and broilers will both be up 7 percent. Broilers are projected to see production up 29 billion pounds and pork about 18.5 billion pounds. Total meat will be up 4 percent at 79 bil lion pounds. (Turn to Pag* A4O) • Simple belt dnve • Low maintenance (no gears or castings) • Few moving parts • Easy height adjustment Special Price; 6'9" • $4,340. B' -$5,244. For Over 75 Years Farm Equipment Division (Equpment Distributors) FARM Hagerstown, MD EQUIPMENT, * (301)791-0422 WANTED; TIMBER Free estimate of your wood lot. Payment in full before cutting. References available. Perry County and surrounding counties. Buck Hardwoods 717-438-3112 leave message
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