Penn State Dairy Alliance Offers
Businessense Training For Dairy CFOs
UNIVERSITY PARK (Centre
Co.) Penn State Dairy Alliance
has developed a program to pro
vide hands-on training in data
collection and interpretation for
chief financial officers of dairy
farms.
Called BusinesSense, the pro
gram combines formal instruc
tion, group discussion and com
puter analysis in a small group
setting so participants can learn
from each other, as well as from
the instructors.
According to Brad Hilty, in
formation management specialist
with Penn State’s Dairy Alliance
program, monitoring business
performance is critical to main
taining a competitive position in
today’s dairy environment. Key
decision-makers of the business
must know what data is impor
tant and how to interpret it.
“The chief financial officer,
who in many cases is the dairy
producer and farm owner or their
spouse, must know how to col
lect, organize, process and report
data in a format that is easily in
terpreted,” Hilty says.
Businesscnse has been de
signed to train key decision mak
ers in dairy businesses to make
decisions in a systematic and
standardized way using data
management and analysis.
The BusinesSense program will
help participants answer these
key questions:
1. What benchmarks are im
portant in' monitorihg the per
feffnance of a dairy business?
How are the benchmarks used to
pinpoint bottlenecks in an opera
tion?
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December 3rd thru December IStttj1Stttj
Monday-Friday 7:00 AM - 5:00 PM; Saturday 7:00 AM- Nbon
CASH & CARRY • 10% DISCOUNT ON MOST ITEMS
Dec. 3 - Merial 6f Sobering
Dec. 4 - Intervet
Dec. 5 - natural EFX
Dec. 6 - Fort Dodge
2. How can standardization in
data collection and organization
improve the quality of informa
tion used for decision-making?
3. What is the importance of
knowing and controlling produc
tion costs? Who is more profita
ble, the low-cost producer or the
producer who stresses produc
tion?
BusinesSense is a series of
three meetings designed to pro
gressively build the participants’
skills in information and business
management.
Session 1, Establishing a
Baseline for Business Evaluation,
features a lecture on “Bench
marks and Bottlenecks Evalu
ating Business Performance.”
Participants will collect data re
quired to complete the Pennsyli
vania Dairy Farm Business Sum
mary and conduct a
comprehensive business analysis.
Session 2, Data Interpreta
tion and Standardization, will in
clude lectures focusing on “Anal
ysis Results and Data
Distribution and Implementing
Standardization in Information
Management Practices.” A group
discussion will help participants
determine what management
practices provide the best returns
and identify opportunities to in
crease profits in their business.
Session 3, Calculating and
Controlling Costs of Production,
will offer participants hands-on
experience in calculating a stan
dardized cost of production with
Dairy COPS, a computerized cost
of production model developed
by Hilty. The session also will
Lunches will be Sponsored by:
feature the lecture “Who retains
the most money? Low Cost vs.
High Production,” and a group
discussion on practical methods
for controlling costs and maxi
mizing returns.
Instructors for Businessense
are Hilty and Jeff Hyde, Penn
State assistant professor of agri
cultural economics and farm
business management specialist.
The program is being offered
around the statc. Each session be
gins at 9:30 a.m. and ends at 3
p.m.
The Lancaster County Series,
offered in cooperation with Lan
caster County Cooperative Ex
tension, will be conducted at the
Lancaster County Farm and
Home Center. The dates are:
Dec. 14 and Jan. 22,2002.
Sessions will be held in north
central Pennsylvania (Bradford,
Tioga and Potter counties) on
Dec. 19, Jan. 24 and Feb. 7,2002.
The location will be announced
later.
The program will be offered in
northwest Pennsylvania (Erie,
Warren, Crawford, Venango,
Forest, Mercer, Clarion counties)
on Dec. 6, Jan. 7-8, 2002. The
program will be held at the Link
To Learn Computer Training
Center in the Crawford County
Industrial Park in Meadville.
The cost of the program is
$l5O for all three meetings. Addi
tional individuals from a business
can attend for an additional fee
of $65 each. Checks should be
made payable to Penn State Uni
versity.
ANNUAL
Dec. 7 - Co-Pulsation
Dec. 10 - Merial
Dec. 11 - Intervet
Dec. 12 - Agri Labs
North River
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4000 Towel Case
$ 13.05
Skid of 42 Cases
$ 12.85/Case
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Dated November 2001
(rtM eet>‘
oj mo lj
Crops Conferences Set
LEESPORT (Berks Co.)
Wildlife pest management and
an annual update about new
products for agronomics are
some of the topics being of
fered at the Southeast Penn
sylvania Crops Conferences in
2002.
The program is a coopera
tive educational effort between
Agway, Moyer and Son Inc.
and Penn State Cooperative
Extension.
Annual programs that were
previously sponsored by these
organizations, such as Penn
State Crops Days and grower/
dealer meetings offered by
Agway and Moyer & Son Inc.,
will not be conducted. The
Southeast Pennsylvania Crops
Conference is being conducted
in lieu of these programs.
There are four dates and lo
cations. Growers can attend
any meeting that fits their
schedule. The meeting for Jan.
22 at the Leesport Farmers
Market, Leesport and Jan. 25,
East Brandywine Fireball,
Guthriesville, is scheduled for
9:30 a.m. registration, with a
10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. program.
Lunch is served.
The meeting for Jan. 23 at
the Days Inn, Allentown and
Jan. 24 at the Montgomery
County 4-H Center,
Creamery, will offer a day
program, with four concurrent
sessions. The sessions are
scheduled to give producers
maximum flexibility in their
schedules and choice of topic.
Registration begins at 9 a.m.
and the program is scheduled
COMING TUBS., DEC. 18, 2001
.'-.■wi
FARM FOR PROFIT)
and Pesticide Meetings
Morning - 9:30 AM
Gilson Martin * Farm For Profit
Todd Reece - Insta-Gro Plant Food
Free Lunch For Those Who Attend
Morning Session
Afternoon - 12:30 PM
Jeff Stoltzfus - Extension Service
John Flanagan - Syngenta
Brian Loucks -Tlmac
Evening - 7:00*9:00 PM
Jeff Stoltzfus - Extension Service
John Flanagan - Syngenta
BrianLoucks - Tlmac
2 Corn & 2 Category Points Wilt Be Given For
Afternoon & Evening Sessions
Agriweb" System
• Confines sand bedding in stalls
• Provides uniform, stable surface in
high use areas
• Creates firm surface for stream crossing
• Protects top soil on slopes & spillways
List Price $225.00
SPECI AL PRICS 198,50
i\i Ui-I. .iy jj i*f ,I*/
from 9:30 a.m. to 1:45 p.m,
Lunch is served.
An evening meeting at both
Allentown and Creamery is of
fered especially for part-time
farmers, starting with a 6 p.m.
registration, dessert, and cof
fee served at 6:30 p.m., and
program from 7 to 9 p.m.
Cost is $lO for daytime pro
gram by Jan. 15, $l2 after
Jan. IS. The evening program
costs $5 by Jan. IS, $7 after
Jan. 15.
Producers in Berks, Bucks,
Chester, Lehigh, Montgomery,
Northampton, and Schuylkill
counties are invited to attend.
Pesticide credits will be of
fered at all locations and a
trade show will be in conjunc
tion with the program.
Penn State University spe
cialists and agency representa
tives from the Pennsylvania
Department of Agriculture
and the Pennsylvania Game
Commission will be present.
Sponsors of the Southeast
Pennsylvania Crops Confer
ence include Agway, Aventis,
BASF, Dow AgroSciences,
Mid Atlantic Farm Credit,
Monsanto, Moyer and Son
Inc., Penn State Cooperative
Extension, and Syngenta.
For more information about
the agenda or registration in
formation, contact Mena Hau
tau, Penn State Cooperative
Extension-Berks County,
(610) 378-1327, (610)
378-7961, e-mail: Berks.exten
sion.psu.edu, or contact your
local county extension office.