A26-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, April 22, 2000
New Program
(Continued from Page A 25)
dustry toward eliminating the
“outliers” to improve the aver
ages which translates as consist
ency for the consumer. The 1995
audit revealed that beef was
viewed as inconsistent with
excess waste and problems with
palatability and tenderness.
Slayton encouraged produc
ers to focus on isolating and get
ting back the money they are
losing because of quality issues.
For instance, he noted that in
Pennsylvania, one out of every
five beef carcasses is outside of
the ideal yield grade category of
3.5 or less; 11 percent weigh
more than 900 pounds, 6 percent
less than 600 pounds; 9 percent
are no-rolls; 19 percent have
ribeye areas greater than 15 or
less than 11 square inches;and
22 percent had liver condemna
tions.
As far as quality grades,
Pennsylvania does better than
the national average; however,
there is still a deficit between
consumer demand for the
branded beef products that
come from these cattle and the
number of carcasses which actu
ally make the grade here.
This industry is positioned for
exciting times, said Slayton, and
he foresees greater utilization
and consumer recognition of the
NCBA industry ‘’quality mark.”
State beef quality assurance pro
grams are recognized to use the
mark in Minnesota, lowa, Miss
ouri, and Texas. Blueprint orga
nizers want to see Pennsylvania
on that list.
“We need to position our
selves for the changes coming
along in the marketplace in
order to be profitable,” Comer
ford said, listing industry con
solidation, ranch, to retail
alliances, branded beef pro
grams, and source identification
as the harbingers of the future.
Beef value is determined by
grade, finish, weight, sex, and
color, Comerford acknowl
edged. However, grading is in
tended as a way to categorize
products for commercial, not
consumer trade. While USDA
EMAIL -
LANCASTER Dt-
PCDART
If you have a computer and want a Dairy Record i
Consider the FCDART Advantage
• A proven program used by 2500 Dairymen acn
• Low cost rental available
• free set-up and support
• Free upgrades
Lancaster DHIA serves Southeastern and Southcentn
And Northern Maryland
grading is respected worldwide,
is nationally correlated, does an
accurate job of predicting pala
tability, tenderness is becoming
the next genetic and technologi
cal focus of the industry.
“The problems is, we don’t
know it’s tender until it’s dead,
unlike marbling,” he said,
noting that Texas A&M re
searchers believe they have
found the candidate genes for
tenderness, “the pinpoint in the
ocean that says these are the
genes which influence tender
ness, and that technology is up
for sale. What happens when
someone buys that technology,
and puts their name on that
product?” he said.
Comerford suggests that
grading will continue to used for
verification of branded prod
ucts; however, commodity beef
will have less value on this
market. “Producers will be
asking themselves: Tf I’m not
producing into one of these cate
gories, who’s going to buy my
cattle?’” said Comerford. These
programs prove that “It’s not
just beef, it’s somebody’s beef, a
mark consumers can relay on.”
Instead of focusing energy on
the things they can’t change,
such as the market, Comerford
encouraged producers to focus
on taking steps at home first.
“The difference, at any given
time, between the most and least
profitable steer in the feediot is
about $300,” he said, holding a
fist full of 300 $1 bills and count
ing them into piles according to
nine profit centers associated
with producing the typical 750-
pound Choice steer carcass... or
not. Profit, Comerford reminded
the audience, is measured in the
difference between return and
cost. “Where’s all the money?
It’s out there in your feedbunk
and the decisions you make.”
To participate, request a visit,
or find out more about the Blue
print for success, contact Wen
dall Landis at (717) 702-2015 or
e-mail: wlandis@das.psu.edu.
Information can also be found at
the website address;
www.das.psu.edu/xlivestock.
cfm.
'DHIA
Lancaster Dairy Herd Improvement Assodat
1592 Old Line Road, Manheim, PA 17545-822
Telephone (717) 665-5960 FAX (717) 664-2911
1-888-202-DHIA (3442)
1 Web Site - LancasterDHl
and
A Winning Combinati
Lancaster
Perry County Farmers’ Market Seeks Vendors
LOYSVILLE (Perry Co.)
The recently formed Perry County
Farmers’ Market offers a variety of
goods, including fresh vegetables,
baked goods, fresh meats, and
BUY,
SELL,
TRADE
OR
RENT
THROUGH
THE
CLASSIFIED
ADS
IN
Lancaster
Farming
PHONE
717-626-1164
OR
717-394-3047
FAX
717-733-6058
Mon., Tues.,
Wed., Fri.
8 AM to 5 PM
Thurs.
7 AM to 5 PM
1,1
other items.
The market is open to new ven
dors. The market is located near
Loysville along RL 274 and oper
ates every Friday from 9 a.m.-8
use ORIGINAL
Massey Ferguson Lubricants
For All Of Your Equipment!
fiM
< V o
Z Convenient
5 Gallon Bucket
All formulated to'
the performance
requirements on
today’s low emtss
O’
Gallon
© r
A
FIELDS
IMPLEMENT STORE
Eighty Four, PA
724-222-1154
ABCO
PARTS
DIVISION
MASSEY-FERGUSON
Go to the Massey Ferguson Dealer below
for great deals on lubricants
PEOPLES SALES M.M. WEAVER &
AND SERVICE SONS, INC.
Oakland Mills, PA Leola, PA
717-463-2735 717-659-2321
MEYER’S
IMPLEMENTS, INC.
Greencastle, PA
717-597-2176
LEBANON VALLEY LONGENECKER’S,
IMPLEMENTS INC.
Richland, PA Williamsburg, PA
717-866-7518 814-793-3731
p.m. and every Saturday from 9
a.m.-2 p.m. Year-round space is
available.
For more information, call (717)
536-3203 or (717) 536-3576.
New
4 Quart Bottle!