1 P HENN SfrtTL ()NIVePO?Tp 040 Vol. 44 No. 3 Pennsylvania Farm Bureau Continues To Grow VERNON ACHENBACH JR. Lancaster Farming Staff HERSHEY (Dauphin Co.) Pennsylvania Farm Bureau leaders on Tuesday pre sented a message to delegates, members, state legislators and friends that the organization is healthy and has come of age as a representative of agricultural com munity consensus. The message was especially delivered by PFB President Guy Donaldson in two speeches made Tuesday during the Monday-to- Wednesday PFB 48th annual con vention at the Hershey Lodge and Convention Center. Tobacco Marketing Cooperative Asks Farmers To Join Now EVERETi rsEWSWANGER Managing Editor PARADISE (Lancaster Co.) The formation of a tobacco market ing cooperative in Lancaster Coun ty received a push forward this week as the financial pressures of the unsold 1997 crop lying in bams under the hanging new crop brought 125 farmers (mostly Amish) out to an organizational Wengert’s Dairy receives the Lebanon County Conservation District’s Clean Water Farm Award for its streambank fencing and cattle crossing work. From the left, Dis trict Naturalist/Forester Leigh Beamesderfer and District Director Charles Wertz pre sent the award to John B. Wengert, president of Wengert’s Dairy. See story page A3O. Photo by Vern Achenbach Jr. Lancaster Farmland Trust Preserves 100 Farms In 10 Years EVERETT NEWSWANGER Managing Editor STRASBURG (Lancaster Co.) “Last year, (at the nincth annual meeting) we looked at the possibil ity of preserving 100 farms in 10 years," said Tom Stauffer, cxccu Four Sections During the President’s Lunc heon event, Donaldson talked about the strength of the organiza tion in its membership campaign, and how the services and programs and effective promotion of Farm Bureau policies have helped to boost membership. He reported that the organiza tion had 26,149 members for 1998, and that 47 out of 54 county groups met their membership goal. Additionally, 50 counties reported at least one additional member over last year, and that 17 counties reported all-time high (Turn to Page A2B) meeting at the Paradise Communi ty Building Wednesday night. And many farmers handed over the $5O membership fee on the spot with several hundred agreements taken along to be returned later and dis tributed to neighbors and friends. The new cooperative to be organized under the name of Pen nsylvania Tobacco Marketing (Turn to Page A 24) live director of the Lancaster Farm land Trust “And here we are (at the 10th annual dinner), and it looks like we will have 95 farms pre served by the end of 1998 with five more farms under agreement to be recorded by the end of January,, Lancaster Farming, Saturday, November 21, 1998 The past several weeks a lot of turkey growers have been preparing for the holiday season, the busiest for the processors and retailers in terms of sales. The weeks pre viously Lynn Horst had shipped out a great deal of birds for Wampler Foods, of which he is under contract, to New Oxford. A couple of weeks before Thanksgiving Horst was busy caring for seven-week-old hens, British United Turkey breed. Horst poses with his son, Jeffrey in front of the farm sign. Photo by Andy Andrews 1999.1 consider this to be amazing success.” The Lancaster Farmland Trust is a private, non-profit organization working to preserve the rich and productive farmland in Landaster (Turn to Page A 27) $29.50 Per Year This Year Excellent For Turkey G, owing ANDY ANDREWS Lancaster Farming Staff GETTYSBURG (Adams Co) May 1997 seems farther away than about a year and a half for the Horst family. That month, a fire broke out in a faulty brooder stove and ignited dry shavings on the floor of a two story wooden brooder bam, ignit ing the dry wood in there. “The bam went in no time,” said Lynn Horst. “It made a hot fire ” Lynn, with wife Starla and children Stacy, 6, in the first grade at Hanover Mennonite School; Jef frey. 3: and Chad, 1 year, don’t look on the disaster of that spring as devastating. In fact, for the turk ey farmers, two weeks after the fire “we were moving dirt,” said Lynn, 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, 11/20 600 Per Copy installing a new bam, finished in September 1997. The new bam is a blessing in itself —the old building measured 40 by 300 feet in sire. The new brooder bam measures 50 by 300 feet, enough for 2,000 more buds, Horst said. The past several weeks a lot of turkey growers have been prepar ing for the holiday season, the busiest for the processors and retailers in terms of sales. The weeks previously Horst had shipped out a great deal of birds for Wampler Foods, of which he is under contract, to New Oxford. A couple of weeks before Thanks giving Horst was busy caring for seven-week-old hens, British (Turn to Page A 26) • General 1 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 spm, Tuesday, 11 /24