V 01.43 No. 34
Pennsylvania Farm Show Receives National Special Events Honor
VERNON ACHENBACH JR.
Lancaster Fanning Staff
HARRISBURG (Dauphin
Co.) As one of many livestock
events across the North American
continent, the Pennsylvania Farm
Show stands out among the best
In fact, a magazine and organi
zation devoted to the $4 billion
per-year, special-events industry
across die United States and Cana
da has recently named the Pennsyl
vania Farm Show its top rodeo/
livestock event of the year.
Further, according to the
publisher of the magazine. Events
Business News, it has announced
plans to feature the Pennsylvania
Farm Show in its upcoming special
events directory issue, virtually
guaranteeing wide publicity of the
Pennsylvania Farm Show within
the special events industry.
On Friday, the entire staff of the
Pennsylvania Farm Show cele
brated the award, and were to have
been treated to a mid-day barbeque
event, held after newspaper
deadline.
Dennis Gmmbine, state Farm
Show director, said prior to the
event that he wanted to hold the
barbeque in order to announce the
award to the staff personally, and
also because he wanted to provide
an informal, fun gathering for all
employees, because it has been
their work and dedication that
made receiving the award
possible.
In a letter to all Farm Show staff.
Grumbinc wrote:
'‘Congratulations! Recently we
have received notification from
Marshal G. Davis, publisher of
Events Business News that the PA
Farm Show has been selected top
rodeo/livestock event of the year.
This award is undoubtedly the
Office Closed
July 3
To celebrate Independence
Day, the office of Lancaster
Farming Is closed Friday, July
3. The office will reopen Mon
day, July 6.
Deadlines are as foflows:
• Public Sale, Auction Report
* ads—s p.m., Monday, June 29.
• Classified, Section D ads
5 p.m., Tuesday, June 30.
• Classified, Section C, Farm
Equipment ads, 9 a.m. Wednes
day, July 1.
• General News ~ noon, Wed
nesday, July i.
Farms Requiring Nutrient Management Plans Need To Come Forward
VERNON ACHENBACH JR.
Lancaster Fanning Staff
HARRISBURG (Dauphin
Co.) Pennsylvania farmers
who need nutrient management
plans in order to comply with the
state’s Nutrient Management Act
(Act 6) need to come forward
before the Oct 1,1998 deadline to
submit plans.
Those who need plans are those
Four Sections
most prestigious recognition the
Farm Show has ever received.
“I take great pride in informing
all of you of your award. Yes, your
award. If it were not for the pride
and dedication of each and every
member of the Farm Show staff,
this honor would never have
occurred.”
Davis said this week that the
“I’m not thinking of retiring,” said Carl Myer. Neither is he
thinking of slowing down. The SC-year-old and his wife Dot
plan to expand their milking herd to 500-head. Because the
LOU ANN GOOD
Lancaster Fanning Staff
MANHEIM (Lancaster Co.)
With 700 acres to farm and 280
cows to milk three times daily,
most people think Carl and Dot
Myer have enough work to do. But
plans are drawn to increase the
herd size to SOO milking cows
within the next two years.
“About 90 percent of the people
might think that we are making a
bad financial decision to expand at
our age, but it seems like the right
with 2,000 pounds or more of
livestock per acre of operator
controlled land suitable to receive
manure.
According to information pre
sented last week to the Nutrient
Management Advisory Board
(NMAB).of the State Conservation
, Commission (SCQ, there have
been only 92 nutrient management
plans submitted within the first six
Lancaster Farming, Saturday, June 27, 1998
Pennsylvania Farm Show was one
of many such shows nominated for
the award.
Also, he said that the Farm
Show is considered mostly as a
livestock show. Despite the award
title, only minor consideration was
given to the fact that the state Farm
Show has included a rodeo event in
recent years.
Walnut Run Is Farming At Its Best
thing for us to do,” the 56-year-oid
Myer said.
He loves jumping out of bed in
the morning to start the day. He
loves challenges and the sensation
of joy that wells up within him
when seeing a well-groomed field.
“I’m not thinking of retiring—l
guess I’m too aggressive. But we
want to do whatever makes the
operation profitable,” Myer said.
Looking over the rolling
acreage of the Myer farm along
Elm Road, the couple’s joy is con
months since final regulations
went into effect.
Half of those plans submitted
have been by farmers not requiring
plans, but who voluntarily have
drafted and submitted plans.
That means that only about 45
plans have been submitted by
those with farms legally defined by
Pennsylvania as concentrated ani
mal operations (CAOs).
$29.50 Per Year
In fact, Davis said that the Farm
Show was in direct competition
with such shows as the Houston
Rodeo and Livestock Show, the
Calgary Stampede, national finals
for the rodeo in Las Vegas, a large
livestock show in Colorado, the
North American International
Livestock Exposition, and many
others of prominence.
couple enjoy sharing Walnut Run Farm with others, the
expansion will Include an area for visitors to observe the
milking operation. Photo by Lou Ann Good.
tagious. The expansive well
manicured lawn, greening potato
acreage, and the cows in view, give
one the sense that this is farming at
its best.
“Dairying is good to us. We
struggled to produce many years,
but in the last 10-15 years, a lot fell
together. Back then, wc never
dreamed that we’d be averaging
25,200 pounds a cow,” Myer said.
His passion for farming has nev
er dimmed since the ipoment he
was a little boy. helping his dad on
What that indicates to state offi
cials, and others at the federal level
watching how the Pennsylvania
farm community complies with its
own state law, is that there are a lot
of fanners either intending to wait
until the last minute to submit a
plan, hoping that no one figures
out that they heed a plan, or that
there are many who haven’t
received word of the law and the
600 Per Copy
Davis said that the holding orga
nization of the special events
magazine and directory is Events
Alliance an 800-member orga
nization of the special events
industry which took part in the
evaluations of nominated shows
for the award.
(Turn to Pag* All)
the farm.
His dad died unexpectedly from
a heart attack when Myer was only
13 years old. As the oldest in the
family that a younger
brother and sister, continuing the
fanning operation looked fairly
impossible to most folks. .But
Myer’s mother (Nora Myer) knew
her son’s passion for farming and
determined that they would con
tinue to farm the 145 acres, which,
at that time, included 20 milking
(Turn to Pago A 34)
deadline for submitting a plan.
Whatever is true, anything that
can be used as evidence that far
mers are failing to comply with the
environmental protection law pro
vides an opening fra attack from
agricultural opponents, who may
well attempt to use it to sway the
general public into believing that
farmers ate trying to get away with
(Turn to Pago A3l)