The quality assurance team of Wendall Landis, BOA certification director; Dr. Bill Henning, Penn State extension meats specialist; Dr. Harold Harpster, Penn State rumi nant nutritionist; and Dr. John Comerford, Penn State extension beef specialist, pro vided the classroom segment of quality assurance program during the cattle feeder’s day. Loop Stalls Designed for Durability Finished with a zinc rich under coat & polyester top coat. v v Freedom (( Extra Wide Front (( Heifer U Wide Front - - Available In 4‘, s', 6', 6'6", A 6'9" Finish protects against rust, chipping, and chemical deterioration. Wide Front Loop Stalls Versatile design offers greater cow comfort. Generous lunge space for head & neck between top and bottom of loop. Loop Stall Construction Features: Heavy Duty construction with 2 3 /»" outside diameter high yield steel tubing with 12 gauge (.108) wall. Spray arc transfer method used on welds. Paul B. Zimmerman, Inc. 295 Woodcorner Road • Lititz, PA 17543 717/738-7365 f mile west of Ephrata Call or write for additional information Hours and the name of your nearest dealer Mon-Fn 7-5 Cattle Feeder’s Day (Continued from Page A 1) Jordan reports no more than 75 pounds variance in a whole group. “Feeders get better cattle at the end if they start better at tfie front,” he said. Guidelines include, among other requirements, 45 days of weaning, a four-way virus and other vaccines, and deworming at weaning. Recommended nutrition is a high-quality, energy ration the first three-to-five days, then the calves should be hand-fed on grass, given free choice salt and minerals, and have a clean, ade quate water supply “condi tioned but not too fat,” said Jordan. The calves, then, are ready to perform at the feedlot after the sale. Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) Program After receiving funding in Oc tober from the Pennsylvania De partment of Agriculture, the Pennsylvania Beef Quality As surance program is now “what’s on the horizon,” according to Wendall Landis, program direc tor. Goals of the program in clude increasing carcass quality Lancaster Farming, Saturday, February 3,2001-A35 by lowering residues, defects, and pathogen contamination. “Beef quality assurance is everyone’s job,” said Landis. Training sessions will be con ducted from February through May, with point-of-purchase surveys for consumers in May and June. Producers will com plete a two-part training in cluded a classroom and hands on, chute-side training, besides a recertification every two years. Dr. Bill Henning, Penn State extension meats specialist, ad dressed “Food Safety Measures at Packing Plants.” Last year there were 33 mil lion cases of foodborne illnesses, said Henning, and 9,000 deaths. Approximately 10,000-20,000 cases of e.coli, found in ground beef, lettuce, sprouts, or apple cider, occur yearly. E.coli is found in 2-4 percent of cattle, and 2S percent of America’s feedyards. USDA requirements control biological, physical, and chemi cal hazards with the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) program. A muscle, said Henning, is (Turn to Page A 37) unity seeds liEra Hybrid Seed Corn SAVE MONEY BUY DIRECT AvailablaAt Sam's •Club ; OurSeedis Also Available at Several Farmer Distribution Sites Call For the Nearest Location 1-800-338-4551 Food Safety Average Farm Feed Costs for Handy Reference To help farmers across the state to have handy ref erence of commodity input costs in their feeding opera tions for DHIA record sheets or to develop live stock feed cost data, here’s last week’s average costs of various ingredients as com piled from regional reports across the state of Pennsyl vania. Remember, these are av erages, so you will need to adjust your figures up or down according to your lo cation and the quality of your crop. Corn, No.2y 2.20 bu., 3.93 cwt. Wheat, N 0.2 2.49 bu., 4.15 cwt. Barley, N 0.3 1.54 bu., 3.30 cwt. Oats, N 0.2 4.31 cwt. Soybeans, No.l bu., 7.29 cwt. 1.38 bu.. Ear Corn 60.39 ton, 3.02 cwt. Alfalfa Hay 101.25 ton, 5.06 cwt. Mixed Hay 96.25 ton, 4.81 cwt. Timothy Hay 95.00 ton, 4.75 cwt. ABAC We Do Have An EaHy Order Program! www.unHyseeds.com 4.37