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V 01.45 No. 6
Officials Say DFA Small In Country, Big In City
Officials of Dairy Farmers of America met in four informa
tional meetings with members this week. More than 800
dairy farmers attended. At the New Holland meeting, from
left, are Herman Brubaker, board chairman, and Gary Han
man, president and CEO. Photo by Everett Newawanger, editor.
At the Lebanon Valley Farm-City Banquet, Lynn and Col
leen Struphar receive the Century Farm Award from Secret
ary of Agriculture Samuel Hayes Jr. With 700 in attendance,
the event is billed as the largest of its kind in Pennsylvania.
Photo by Lou Ann Good.
At the Lancaster DHIA annual meeting, from left, are Jay
Mylin, manager; Jenny Bowman, herd with lowest SCC of
58,000; and Steve Hershey, president. See story on page
A 26. Photo by Evantt Nawawangar, adltor.
Five Section*
Lancaster Farming, Saturday, December 11, 1999
EVERETT NEWSWANGER
Editor
NEW HOLLAND (Lancaster
Co ) - To promote the idea of
farmer power in the marketplace,
officials of a national dairy
cooperative conducted several
Northeast information meetings
this week to inform dairy farmeis
how they see the future of the
dairy industry
Herman Brubaker, board
chairman of the Dairy Farmers of
Amenca (DFA) and an Ohio
dairy faimer, told more than 300
dairy farm families at Yoder's
Restaurant m New Holland that
the criticism of DFA's size as to
large is not true, since the
LOU ANN GOOD
Lancaster Fanning Staff
LEBANON (Lebanon Co.)
“This is the biggest Farm-City
blast in Pennsylvania," said Sec
retary of Agriculture Samuel Hay
es Jr.
More than 700 people attended
the Lebanon Valley Farm-City
Banquet, which brings town and
farm communities together.
The Tuesday evening banquet at
the Lebanon Valley Expo Center
featured an antique tractor display,
a Sheep to Shawl auction, enter
tainment by Palmyra High School
Jazz Band, Century Farm and Cen
tury business awards, hefty door
prizes, and an abundance of food.
Most outstanding were the
entertaining accounts told by parti
cipants in the farm-city exchange
and by Pennsylvania Ag Spokes
person Shirley Krall.
LOU ANN GOOD
Lancaster Fanning Staff
HERSHEY (Dauphin Co.)
Fanners from across the nation
gathered in Hershey this week for
the 33rd National Young Fanner
Educational Institute (NYFEA).
While farming differs consider
ably throughout the states due to
climate, soil, and commodities,
Duane Nelson, president of the
national organization, said that far
mers share the same common con
cerns connected with water, envi
ronment, marketing, and prices.
Peanuts, tobacco, cotton, and
livestock farmers can learn from
<me another. Nelson said. He runs a
diversified operation on the fami
ly's 1,100-acre farm in Nebraska.
In addition to raising 3,000 hogs,
750 head of cattle, and crop farm
ing, Nelson sells steel buildings.
Nelson said that he encourages
people to join because the organi-
More Than 700 Attend
Lebanon Farm-City Banquet
National Young Farmers
Convene In Hershey
cooperative has incorporated local
district delegates to bring the
grass-roots opinion into the
organization And yet the
coopeiative is large enough to
make some power plays m the
national market "This makes us
small in the country and big in the
city," Brubaker said
Gary Hanman, DFA president
and CEO, said the foundeis of the
coopeiative looked at the
integration of beet, hogs, and
poultry and concluded dauy
farmers need to have some say in
the marketplace it they are not to
go the way of mtegiation
"Dairy farmers need to move
up the marketing chain to get
Two fanners and two business
leaders shared their impressions of
what it was like to swap jobs.
Farmer Linda Krall and Kim
Moyer, controller for Butler Man
ufacturing, spent a day on the job
with each other. Unfortunately
Kim discovered that a farmer’s day
lasts a lot longer than she expected.
Although Kim helped from 4:30
a.m. to 7 p.m., the Krai Is were still
busy working when she left.
Despite (he fascination of plant
operations and meetings, the
exchange taught Linda that “I was
bom to be a dairy farmer.
“It was those little cubby holes
that did it I knew 1 could never sit
cramped up in an office all day
long. I’m used to wide open
spaces,” Linda said.
Linda and her husband Glen
farm 112 acres, and milk 100
Holsteins.
zation is outstanding in providing
leadership development, educa
tional opportunities, community
service projects, and ag issues
sessions.
From Wednesday through
today, the institute provided
numerous educational sessions
and tours of farms and agribusines
ses in the area.
Grower & Marketer
Features Packers
A special section in this issue of Lancaster Farming is our own
Grower A Marketer section, devoted to the production of veget
ables, fruits, the greenhouse industry, and small direct marketing
enterprises in the East The section focuses on the New Jersey
Tomato Council and a Seabrook, N.J. company that packs veget
sble items for a variety of customers in the Mid-Atlantic and North
east Also, Nissley Vineyards, Bainbridge, is featured. Tim Elkner,
Lancaster horticulture agent, provides tips on using drip irriga
tion. The section provides lots of information on upcoming confer
ences and special events, in addition to advertising messages.
$31.00 Per Year
closer to the consumer," Mantuan
said, "rather than have someone
with a consumer franchise move
down through the chain into
production agnculture
Government is getting out of
our business and so to the extent
we can put togethei enough
buyers, we can have say in the
marketplace The free market
system we talk about is fast
coming to a close Wt need a
plate at the marketing table
The marketing system under
the new federal orders will not
use BFP, but will use what is to
be called Class 1 Price Movei
Under the new system the price
Kim told of rounding up cows
from the pasture while it was still
dark.
“Linda gave me a flashlight to
make sure I'd didn't hit the manure
piles, but I did step in a few," Kim
repealed.
“I was determined to help with
every chore on the farm,” Kim said
of her resolve. She climbed a
70-foot silo, helped tie and prep
the cows before milking, scraped
manure troughs, and drove the
combine. But she drew her limit
when the vet offered her a plastic
glove to assist with determining a
cow’s pregnancy.
Kim said that her major obser
vation about cows is “what goes in
the front end comes out the back
end.”
NYF is composed of chapters at
local, state, and national levels.
NYF mission is to promote the per
sonal and professional growth of
all people involved in agriculture.
It’s purpose is to develop leaders,
inspire service, strengthen com
munities, and enhance the success
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