Keystone Adds Staff In
Lancaster County
LANCASTER (Lancaster Co.)
Bruce Miller, vice president of
Keystone’s Lancaster region, has
announced the hiring of Eric
Knutsen and Jay Shannon.
Knutsen has been hired as an
executive loan officer and will se
rvice accounts from the Quarry
ville office. Shannon, who will
service accounts from the Lancas
ter office, has also been hired as
an executive loan officer.
Knutsen joins Keystone with
seven years of Farm Credit experi
ence, having worked previously
for Central Maryland Farm Credit
and Delaware Farm Credit He
grew up on a dairy farm in Rising
Sun, Md., where he resides. He is
a graduate of the University of
Delaware where he majored in ag
business with a concentration in
finance. He is an active member of
the state and national Holstein as
sociations, 4-H Alumni and of St
Patrick’s Church. He enjoys mar
keting registered Holsteins, wood
working, and country dancing.
Knutsen will be providing fin
ancial services to commercial
farmers. His special interest is
working with large and expanding
dairy operations.
Shannon has 16 years of Farm
Credit experience, having worked
for Marva Farm Credit Chesa
peake Farm Credit and Meadville
PCA/FLBA. He grew up on his
family’s dairy farm in Mercer
County, which is still in operation
today. Shannon is a graduate of
Penn State University with a de
gree in agronomy and lives in
Landisville. He is a member of the
Junior Chamber of Commerce.
Mt. Olivet United Methodist
Church, The Ag Issues Forum,
and Pennsylvania Farm Bureau.
Pull-Type Crop Processing
Harvester Produces
Forage
High-Quality Silage
WEST BEND, Wis. Gehl
has introduced a pull-type forage
harvester with exclusive Crop
Processor™ that produces high
quality silage in a single field
operation.
Gehl Model 127 S forage har
vester optimizes processing of
kernels, cob, and stalk—resulting
in improved milk or beef produc
tion through better feed digestion
and utilization.
“In a single operation, the 1275
chops and processes com silage
with its two integral high-speed,
B'/i -inch diameter rolls, which are
similar to those used in roller
mills,” said Gehl Product Man
ager Jim Phillips. ‘The high-capa
city 1275 does everything a self
propelled harvester can do in
terms of processing com but at a
fraction of the initial cost.”
Research studies have shown
that processing com silage greatly
improves its digestibility and utili
zation. The new Gehl 1275 can be
set to deliver a longer length of cut
while still giving you the full ad
vantage of thoroughly processed
Eric Knutsen
Jay Shannon
Shannon will be providing financ
ing, leasing, and other financially
related services to large farm
operations and ag related busi
nesses in Lancaster, Lebanon, and
Dauphin counties.
Gehl has Introduced a pull
type forage harvester with
exclusive Crop Processor™
that produces high-quality
silage In a single field opera
tion.
cobs and kernels, according to
Phillips.
“Processed com silage is more
uniform in its makeup the ker
nels are cracked, and there are no
large chunks of com cobs for your
cows to sort or nose out,” he said.
Maximizing the nutritional val
ue of the silage is possible because
the Model 1275’s roll gap adjusts
for various moisture contents to
ensure‘that no kernels pass
through uncracked, said Phillips.
When the kernels are cracked, the
Investment In Ag Genomics
BASEL, Switzerland The
Novartis Research Foundation an
nounced the planned investment
of USD 600 million is in the next
10 years to fund one of the largest
initiatives in plant genomics.
The Erst step will be the crea
tion of the Novartis AGricultural
Discovery Institute (NADQ),
which will be one of the largest
single research endeavors dedi
cated to agricultural genomics re
search and development Located
in San Diego, Calif., the main
campus of NADI will have a team
of about 180 researchers headed
by Steven P. Briggs, Ph.D. Addi
tional investments will be an
nounced this fall.
NADI will be a spearhead in
Novartis’ strategic focus on bio
technology research, maximizing
cross-sector cooperation between
crop protection and seeds, and
working in tandem with the No
vartis Agribusiness Biotech Re
search facility at Research Tri
angle Park, N.C., and with numer
ous Novartis research stations
worldwide. The close proximity
RACINE, Wis. Case Cor
poration reported operating ear
nings for the second quarter of
$199 million and net income of
$126 million or $1.61 per share.
These results, while below the
record performance reported for
the second quarter of 1997, were
achieved despite one-time costs
associated with the company’s ne
gotiations with the UAW and the
company’s previously announced
sales delay of agricultural equip
ment to the Commonwealth of
Independent States and surround
ing countries.
In the prior year period. Case
reported operating earnings of
$2ll million, and net income of
$l3B million or $1.75 per share.
Second-quarter revenues in
creased to $1.7 billion, up 8 per
cent from the second quarter of
1997, including double-digit sales
growth in North America and Lat
in America, offset by continued
lower sales in the Asia Pacific re
gion.
Operating earnings for the sec
ond quarter were driven by con
tinued cost reduction initiatives
and equitable pricing. These were
offset by $l5 million in expenses
and operating inefficiencies re
lated to the company’s negotia
tions with the UAW and by $l4
million in unfavorable foreign ex
change rates, due primarily to a 17
percent decline in the value of the
Australian dollar. In adtition, the
company reported substantially
higher new-product launch ex
penses as compared to last year’s
rumen bacteria and intestinal en
zymes can more easily unlock the
available store of nutrients re
sulting in better feed digestion and
utilization.
m
BUILDINGUBE FUTURE
Novartis Announces
of NADI to the recently an
nounced Novartis pharmaceuti
cals genomics institute (Novartis
Institute for Functional Ge
nomics), which is being built in La
Jolla, Calif, will optimize cross
business synergies in genomics re
search in both agribusiness and in
pharmaceuticals.
“We aim to create a powerful
technology platform across all of
our businesses. In the future, ge
nomics will play an even more im
portant role in our discovery pro
grams. The institute will offer an
exciting environment, fostering
open scientific exchange with aca
demic institutions, biotech com
panies, and other Novartis re
search centers for testing new
ideas and concepts, and breaking
new ground. This unique scienti
fic network will generate a stream
of innovative and highly competi
tive technologies and products,”
said Daniel Vasella, president of
Novartis.
Agricultural genomics is the
study of the location and function
of groups of genes within crops
and their pests. NADI will apply
Case Reports Strong
Second Quarter
second quarter.
For the first six months of 1998,
net income was $195 million,
compared with $202 million for
the same period last year. Net in
come per share was $2.48, com
pared to $2.37 per share in the
comparable period of 1997. Re
venues for the first six months of
1998 were $3.1 billion, up 10 per
cent over the prior year. Operating
earnings were $3OB million for the
fust six months of 1998, com
pared with $314 million last year.
In the second quarter. Case an
nounced an expanded focus for its
financial services subsidiary by
creating Case Capital Corpora
tion, a broad-based financing
company for the global market
place. In addition, the company
completed the acquisition of cer
tain assets of the Tyler Industries
division of IBOCO, Inc. Tyler is a
designed, manufacturer and distri
butor of chemical and fertilizer
sprayers and applicators.
Case also took steps during the
quarter to keep its equipment in
ventories at below-industry aver
ages.
Other significant developments
during the quarter include the rati
fication by UAW-represented
employees of a six-year contract
between Case and die union. In
addition to favorable economics,
the new agreement provides the
flexibility necessary to implement
Case’s manufacturing strategy, a
key component of which is the
new Case Production- System.
Case Credit Corporation, a lea-
“Some researchers have re
ported that feeding processed com
silage produced an additional two
to four pounds of milk per cow per
day,” said Phillips.
Lancaster Fanning, Saturday, August 1, 1998-03
genomics to generate databases
that match genes with traits, and
will provide advanced technolo
gies that can be used widely in
agribusiness research for the de
velopment of gent-based products.
Steven Briggs, president of
NADI, noted, “We will focus on
identifying targets for seeds and
plant protection. Our funding will
allow us to have considerable
scope and depth in our discovery
efforts, with access to the most ad
vanced research in the industry.”
The new Institute will add to
Novartis’ substantial number of
alliances with leading institutions
and major universities in the U.S.
and overseas. The project will pro
vide a great professional oppor
tunity for scientists in all areas of
genomics and functional ge
nomics relevant to agriculture, in
cluding gene library construction,
sequencing, mapping, and bioin
formatics. In a related initiative,
Novartis recently announced a
USD 3 million agreement with
Clemson University targeted at
mapping the genome of rice and
its pathogens.
ding worldwide financial services
provider for the equipment indus
try, announced net income of $lB
million for the second quarter of
1998, up 6 percent from $l7 mil
lion in the comparable period last
year.
Revenues increased 33 percent
over the prior year to a record $BO
million. These improvements are
attributed to higher financing in
come from strong growth in re
ceivables and leases, partially off
set by the impact of Case Credit’s
asset-management strategy.
For the fust six months of 1998,
revenues increased 24 percent
over the prior year to $156 mil
lion. Net income for the period
was $37 million, down S percent
from $39 million in the prior year.
Increases in financing income
were more than offset by the im
pact of Case Credit’s asset-man
agement strategy and a higher tax
rate during the first six months.
Net income would have been flat
versus the prior year, assuming a
comparable tax rate for both
periods.
Case Credit’s serviced portfolio
grew to a record $5.8 billion as of
June 30, 1998. Financing origina
tions increased 38 percent in the
second quarter and 36 percent for
the fust six months, as compared
to the prior year periods. Signifi
cantly higher financing of other
manufacturers’ equipment was
one of the key drivers of this
growth, representing 21 percent of
total retail originations during the
second quarter and 19 percent for
the first six months.
Case Corporation announced in
June that it intends to expand the
focus of its financisl services busi
ness by creating Case Capital Cor
poration, a broad-based financing
company for the global market
place. Case Capital will include
separate businesses that offer
loans and leases for construction,
agriculture and other industries;
commercial lending within equip
ment industries; multiple lines of
insurance products and private
label credit cards.