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'01.44 No. 2
Dairy Practices Council Works For Mutual Benefit
VERNON ACHENBACH JR.
Lancaster Farming Staff
HARRISBURG (Dauphin
Co.) The Dairy Practices
Council (DPQ held its annual con
vention Nov. 5 at the Harrisburg
East Holiday Inn to continue its
ongoing technical work in provid
ing practical guidelines fen* daily
practices, to be informed about
issues of concern, and to hold its
annual business meeting.
The national DPC organization
is an all-volunteer, collaborative
effort of three distinct sectors of
the daily business the daily
production and manufacturing
industry, the regulatoiy agencies
concerned with the dairy industry,
and dairy education institutions
and individuals.
Through a number of standing
committees, called task forces, the
DPC has over the years put
together a series of instructional
and technical publications that
serve all concerned with the daily
industry as the most accurate and
Deadlines Change
For Thanksgiving
The Lancaster Farming
office will be closed Thursday,
November 26 in observance of
Thanksgiving Day. News and
advertising deadlines for that
week are as follows;
• Public sale ads Noon,
Monday, 11/23.
• Mailbox markets 5
p.m. Friday, 11/20.
USDA NRCS, EPA To Hold
Meeting On AFO Proposal
HARRISBURG (Dauphin Co.) One of six national meetings
concerning the federal government's proposals for nutrient manage
ment planning for livestock operations is set to be held from 2-5
p.m.Tuesday, Nov. 17, at the Sheraton Inn Harrisburg East, in Union
Deposit
Earlier this year, a joint proposal from the U.S. Department of Agri
culture and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was published
in the Federal Register for a strategy by the agencies to use existing
authorities and programs to encourage all livestock farmers to adopt
nutrient management plans.
The joint proposal is called the USDA/EPA Unified Joint Strategy
for Animal Feeding Operations.
The meeting about the strategy is being called a “public listening
session,” and the purpose is to collect public comment
The session is open to all, though those wishing to speak need to
provide advanced notice in writing, or register to speak upon arriving
at the meeting.
Those wishing to make oral presentations during Tuesday's public
listening session should forward a written request to Jane Oertly, State
Conservationist, Natural Resources Conservation Service, One Credit
Union Place, Suite 340, Harrisburg, PA 17110, or call (717)237-2202.
Presentations will be limited to 3-5 minutes depending on the num
ber of people wishing to speak. Participants may also register to speak
upon arrival at the meeting. Requests will behonored on a first-come,
first-service basis.
Written comments can be mailed to Denise Coleman, program anal
yst, Natural Resources Conservation Service, ATTN: AFO, P.O. Box
2890, Washington, D.C. 20013-2890.
Written comments are being accepted by USD A Natural Resources
Conservation Service (NRCS) until Jan. 19, 1999.
(Turn to Pago A 35)
Four Sections
up-to-date sources of information.
The publications contain infor
mation that is not readily available
through the land grant university
extension system.
(Over the years, especially with
a lack of federal support funding,
the extension system has become
involved with and dependent upon
the creation of research publica
tion and outreach nonprofit organi
zations, such as the Northeast Reg
ional Agricultural Engineering
Service and the Mastitis Council.
These organizations publish tech
nical reports and charge a compen
satory fee. The publications con
tain useful information that other
wise would not be accessible to
producers or the general industry.)
Further, the information pre
sented by DPC has the benefit of
being peer reviewed, which adds
tremendously to its soundness.
Especially with today’s new
communications technology, the
lack of distinction between scienti
fically sound information and
• General News Noon,
Wednesday, 11/25.
• Section D ads • 5 p.m.
Tuesday, 11/24
• Farm equipment ads. 9
a.m., Wednesday, 11/25.
• All other ads 5 p.m ,
Tuesday, 11 /24
Lancaster Farming, Saturday, November 14, 1998
commercialized information clev
erly designed to persuade and con
vince consumers has allowed a
mushrooming growth of busines
ses with names sounding decep
tively legitimate.
The DPC is a multiple industry
organization devoted to research
ing and evaluating information
that has proven or repeated perfor
Bill and Karen Flagg, who farm with their two sons, Dean, 14 and Chris, 12, stand
outside their homestead, built in the mid-1700s. Recently the Flagg family sent ship
ments of fullblood Simmental embryos and semen to the Ostaszewski family in
Poland. Photo by Andy Andrews
Pennsylvania Simmental Genetics
Make New Home In Poland
ANDY ANDREWS
Lancaster Farming Staff
ELVERSON (Chester Co.)
For the Jacek Ostaszewski (pro
nounced “oshefski”) family from
Bialstok, a town in the northeast
region of Poland, an American
family has given them a new lease
on farm life.
In an area previously dominated
by state-owned communist farm
land, a farm family is hoping to
adopt western-style management
and bring in proven western
style beef herd genetics.
In mid-October, shipments of
fullblood Simmental embryos and
semen were made to the Ostas
zewski family from Warren Point,
a fullblood Simmental cow/calf
farm operated by Bill, Karen,
Dean, and Christopher Flagg in
Elverson.
With the help of Em Tran, Inc.,
Elizabethtown, through Steve
Mower, director of export promo
tions, Wfirren Point shipped the
beef genetics to help improve the
beef herd in the former communist
country, which has very few real
beef cows.
The bulk of the embtyos were
from Athena, the Flagg’s 19- year
old fullblood cow whose dam was
imported from the Fleckveih rcg-
$29.50 Per Year
mance. In addition, the organiza
tions that comprise the DPC mem
bership use the information DPC
publishes, they don’t just help
make it to sell.
The slogan of the DPC is “Qual
ity and uniformity through educa
tion and cooperation.”
The goal is to foster the growth
of quality dairy product through
ion of southern Germany in the
mid-19705. According to Karen
Flagg, Athena’s sons have consis
tently excelled when placed on test
at the Penn State Meat Animal
Evaluation Center.
Semen from one of those sons,
purchased by Sire Power, Tunk
hannock, was also shipped to
Poland.
At an interview at the Flagg
farm in Elverson, Bill and Karen
26,000 Member State Farm
Bureau Meeting Next Week
CAMP HILL (Cumberland
Co.) Sen. James Gerlach (R -
44th Dist.), a leader in the cam
paign to enact school property
tax reform earlier this year, will
speak at the opening luncheon of
Pennsylvania Farm Bureau’s
48th annual meeting, Monday,
Nov. 16 in Hershey.
Several hundred Farm
Bureau leaders, including 172
voting delegates, will be meeting
at 'the Hershey Lodge and
Convention Center, Nov. 16-18,
to elect leaders and set policies
on issues confronting agricul
ture.
Pennsylvania Farm Bureau
600 Per Copy
quality and uniform practices.
Currently DPC offers 66 publi
cations, some updated annually,
others updated every five years,
depending on advances and the
nature of the subject matter.
Topics range from planning
freestall dairy bams to trouble
(Turn to Pag* A 29)
spoke about the challenge of deliv
ering Sinunental beef genetics to a
family in Poland.
“The Polish people and govern
ment are interested in getting new
technology from other parts of the
world,” Karen said. Since the fall
of communism, the beef breeders
are welcoming in new technology
and other parts of the world to
“take a lead in the new govem
(Ti/rn to Pag* A4O)
(PFB) is a non-governmental,
voluntary farm organization
which represents 20,121 mem
ber families m 54 county farm
bureaus. It is affiliated with the
nation’s largest geheral farm
organization, the 4.8-million
member American Farm Bureau
Federation.
Sen. Gerlach will speak on
“Tax Relief What’s Next?”
during the opening luncheon
which begins at 11:45 a.m.,
Monday. Sen. Gerlach organized
and coordinated the Help for
Homeowners Coalition in 1997.
The statewide coalition of local
(Turn to Pago A 43)