AlO-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, January 26,2002
OPINION
Foster Understanding
Last week, Lancaster Fanning was privileged to attend a special Commu
nity Leaders Focus Group meeting at the Farm and Home Center in Lancas
ter.
The mission: isolate the issues critical to the environmental, economic, and
community impacts of dairy farms.
More than a dozen producers and agri-industry representatives attended
the meeting, where the issues of farm preservation, farm-to-consumer com
munication, and farm economic viability were discussed.
It was a fascinating meeting. Many of the comments about the realities of
dairy farming in urban or rural areas were right-on.
Before the beginning of the focus group meeting (an effort spearheaded by
Dr. Greg Hanson, Penn State Department of Ag Economics and Rural Socio
logy), the participants were asked to list the top issues on their minds.
Lancaster Farming placed these;
• Communities often show a lack of elected officials who have any involve
ment in, concern about, or even general knowledge of family-based large-scale
agriculture.
• There is a general lack of long-term comprehensive planning regarding
nonfarm development on land in townships and boroughs throughout the
state.
• Too much legislation is occurring without considering the thoughts and
well-being of farmers.
What many participants agreed on;
• To truly preserve farms, we must preserve farm profitability.
• The public really would prefer open space, sometimes, and not a pre
served, viable, ag security area-protected farm operation.
• Farmers must be granted the freedom to be able to make a living, even if
it involves some type of nonagricultural business at the farm. But if that
farm’s development rights have been purchased, township or borough super
visors must carefully regulate the size and scope of that business.
• Public relations. Develop relationships with the media. Know who as
signs stories to cover farm events. Make sure the reporter bringing agriculture
to the consumer spotlight provides a fair, accurate, and balanced account.
That’s his or her job. When in doubt, call the newspaper or TV or radio sta
tion and talk to the managing editor if the coverage isn’t fair and balanced.
• Be proactive. Conduct your business as if you truly care about your
neighbors and your farming community.
* Farm Calendar ❖
'a. Meat Goat Producers’ Con
ference, Iron Skillet Restau-
rant, Petro Shopping Center,
Scranton, 9 a.m.-3:15 p.m.
Ohio District Saddle Horse
Training, (740) 732-2381.
Beavcr/Lawrence County Hol
stein annual meeting, Villa 2,
Beaver Falls, 7:30 p.m.
Northeast Organic Farming As
sociation’s Winter Confer
ence, Cook College, New
Brunswick, N.J., 8 a.m.-5
p.m.
Clarion-Venango Forest Land
owner’s Conference, Behrend
Campus, Penn State Erie, 8
a.m.-4 p.m.
Editor.
Unfortunately, our prediction
came true.
During the fall of 2001,1 pre
dicted that milk prices paid to
area dairy farmers would de
cline by $4 per hundredweight
($.40 per gallon) during the up
coming months. Naturally, we
were hoping our prediction
would be wrong.
However, when the average
price paid to local dairy farmers
for December’s produced milk
was announced at $13.72 cents
Mrs. Yoder’s Mt. Hope Res
taurant, Dalton, Ohio, 9:30
a.m., (330) 264-8722.
Capitol Area Turf and Orna
mental Winter School Pro
gram, Holiday Inn,
Grantville, 8 a.m.-3:10 p.m.,
(717)921-8803.
Adams County Corn Crops
Clinic, York Springs Fire
Hall, 8:30 a.m.-2:45 p.m.,
(717) 334-6271.
Beef Educational Meeting,
Bernsville Grange, 5:30 p.m.,
(610) 378-1327.
Dairy Business: 10 Ways to Im
prove Profit Without Expand
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❖ Farm Forum ❖
per hundredweight ($l.lB per
gallon), this meant the pay price
had plunged $4.04 per hun
dredweight ($.35 per gallon)
from September’s pay price of
$17.76 per hundredweight.
How many times have we
seen whenever pay prices to
dairy farmers reach a respect
able level, the “powers to be”
always find a way to crash the
prices? This has happened over
and over again.
This continued roller-coaster
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To Prevent Poultry
Respiratory Disease
Dr. Gregory Martin, regional poul
try agent, reminds us that while we
are in the middle of winter our atten
tion on poultry should turn to con
trolling respiratory diseases. This is
in part because of the balance in the
need of maintaining proper room
temperatures in poultry facilities
with the need for fresh air to ex
change with room air to help exhaust
water and carbon dioxide that stems
from the birds normal conversion of
feed to meat and eggs. This is where
the art of poultry husbandry meets
science, and it is a fine line to main
tain the balance.
Martin suggests that the major
poultry diseases to watch for in our
area are avian influenza (AI) and in
fectious laryngotracheitis (ILT).
These two diseases are somewhat
similar in their clinical appearance,
yet are uniquely identified by a blood
test. Each is serious enough to re
mind us that a good biosecurity pro
gram is a must for all poultry pro-
ducers.
AI has been isolated from both do
mestic and wild birds. It can be car
ried by a bird in its digestive tract
and deposited for the next bird to
pick it up. Only a small (the size of a
dime) amount of droppings with this
virus is enough, to inoculate an entire
house of poultry. Additionally, the
IS GOD
LISTENING?
Background Scripture:
Isaiah 65:17-25.
Devotional Reading:
Revelation 21:1-7.4-9.
When terrorists crashed two do
mestic airliners into New York’s
World Trade Center and another
into the Pentagon in Washington,
D.C., there were people who publicly
demanded to know where God was
in all of this evil tragedy. Writing to
our local newspaper, a man said,
“I’ve been praying for peace for long
er than I can remember. Hasn’t God
been listening?”
Some people were shocked and
outraged by this question, but not I.
Better to honestly express our honest
reactions than bury them. When peo
ple honestly take their protests to
God, he can much better answer
them. In Isaiah 63 and 64, the people
of Israel have been asking questions
such as this. Why does the Lord God
of Israel remain silent?
Isaiah 65 begins with God’s re
sponse to these complaints: “I was
ready to be sought by those who did
not ask for me; I was ready to be
found by those who did not seek me.
Lancaster Farming
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virus can be transmitted via the air
just as seen with the human varieties
of the flu with the virus invading the
upper respiratory tract. A warm host
is what is needed to keep the virus
going, as it does not last long outside
of birds. The strain of virus that af
fects birds is different from the one
that causes human flu.
Routine blood testing is an impor
tant tool producers can use to man
age risk. This method of surveillance
aids in the control of AI as it helps
identify flocks that are harboring the
virus yet are not showing symptoms
of the disease.
Infectious laryngotracheitis (ILT)
is also an upper respiratory disease
that producers must guard against. It
is similar to AI in the fact that the
birds show the same signs, such as
coughing and gasping, and a marked
drop in egg production with the dis
ease. Birds that may recover from the
sickness can be carriers, shedding the
ILT virus for a long period of time.
Vaccination for the disease can aid in
its control.
Practicing biosecurity and good
husbandry are the best methods pro
ducers can employ to control respira
tory diseases. Biosecurity means tak
ing precautions to avoid contact with
any agent that may cause disease. A
number of steps can be taken by pro
ducers to exclude disease.
First, limit the access to the poul
try houses, including a wide perime
ter surrounding the buildings. Any
visitor to the poultry farm should use
a gowning system that is similar to
that seen in a hospital (disposable
coveralls, boots, and hair cover).
Additionally producers should
control access points in poultry hous
ing against the intrusion from wild
birds and rodents. These animals can
be carriers of viruses. Another step is
to use an “all-in-all-out” method of
populating a poultry facility. Allow
time for cleaning, disinfection, and
downtime after the flock is shipped
out. Finally, maintain optimal condi
tions within the house during the
growth and production cycle. This
would include periodic cleaning of
the feed and watering systems and
keeping floors as dry as possible.
If proper precautions are “taken,
the flock owner is providing the best
possible defense against disease.
To Leant Operate Your
Farm As A Business
The Lancaster Chamber Of Com
merce will present a series of semi
nars on “The Farm Executive for
I said, ‘Hear am I, hear am I.’”
(65:1). It was not God who was unre
sponsive, but the people of Israel. He
answered them, but they didn’t like
or heed his answer.
That isn’t too difficult for us to un
derstand is it? We, too, pray for this
and that, but we do not expect any
answers and so we do not hear the
answers he gives us.
Prayer’s Dominant Desire
One of the most influential books
on prayer in my young life and
even today was Harry Emerson
Fosdick’s “The Meaning of Prayer”
(Association Press). Fosdick wrote a
whole chapter on “Prayer As Promi
nent Desire.”
Fifty years ago I underlined some
of his most cogent arguments and
still am guided by them today:
“... many of the speeches addressed
to God that we have called our pray
ers are not real prayers at all.” Why?
Because “They are not our dominant
desires. They do not express the in
ward set and determination of our
lives Prayer that is not dominant
desire is too weak to achieve any
thing.”
I am not suggesting that our pray
ers will be answered by the power of
our words or even our desire. God is
not overcome by the power of our
praying. We do not persuade him to
change his mind because we are so
intent. But our dominant desire
opens our lives so that we may re
ceive his power. We pray about a lot
of things because we feel we ought to,
not because we have an overwhelm
ing passion for this or that cause.
When we do have that dominant de
sire we give God the opportunity to
work through us.
Fosdick also said that “Men are
given to complaining of unanswered
prayer, but the great disasters are
due to answered prayers.” Isn’t that
The 21st Century” Feb. 5-6. Dr.
Danny Klinefelter, professor and ex
tension economist at Texas A&M
University, will lead the sessions for
the Chamber’s ninth annual Farm
Business Management School. Kline
felter specializes in agriculture fi
nance and management development
at Texas A&M University.
The first day of the Farm School
on Feb. 5, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at
Leola Family Restaurant, will focus
on top producer strategies and best
practices, value-added business
plans, and attributes of successful
family businesses. Brent Landis of
the Chamber states this segment will
focus on these ideas and practices
that many farmers could implement.
When looking at the strategies and
best practices of top producers, the
most successful operators tend to be
innovators. Many of their ideas and
practices are drawn from things they
have seen in businesses outside of ag
riculture and then adapted to fit
their situation.
The second component will focus
on evaluating producer’s value
added business plans. Low margins
are causing an increasing number of
producers tc explore ways to gain
more control over the market for
their products. Many value-added
activities involve alliances along the
value chain or group efforts such as
alliances or cooperative arrange
ments. Unfortunately, for every ef
fort that succeeds, another fails. This
session looks at some of the issues
that need to be considered ahead of
time.
The last segment of the Farm
School will analyze the characteris
tics of successful family businesses.
Most commercial farms involve more
than one family member and fre
quently multiple generations. Some
of the businesses and the relation
ships involved thrive, others are tom
apart. The businesses that are suc
cessful over time tend to be heading
off potential problems by addressing
causes.
The Farm School includes an Ag
riculture Finance Breakfast and a
second day geared to FFA and 4-H
students in Lancaster County. If you
wish to attend, call Brent Landis
promptly at (717)-397-3531.
Quote Of The Week:
“/ place economy among the
first and most important republi
can virtues, and public debt as the
greatest of the dangers to be
feared. ”
Thomas Jefferson, 1816
what God is saying through the
prophet in 65:12: .. because when I
called, you did not answer, when I
spoke, you did not listen, but you did
what was evil in my eyes, and chose
what I did not delight in” (v. 12;a,b).
Israel’s doing “what was evil in my
eyes” is evidence not that God didn’t
speak, but that he did and they re
fused to hear him.
Anyone Else?
Someone once told a parable about
a man who fell over a cliff in the
dark and, after falling some distance,
caught hold of a bush that broke his
fall. Hanging on for dear life, the
man called out: “Is there anyone up
there?” Back came a voice saying,
“Yes, this is God. Let go of the bush;
you’re close to the bottom” There
was silence for a few moments until
the man called out; “Uh ... Is there
anyone else up there?”
For those who listen and respond
to God’s word, Isaiah sees a new cre
ation by God: “For behold, I create
new heavens and a new earth ... I
will rejoice in Jerusalem, and be glad
in my people; no more shall be heard
in it the sound of weeping and the
cry of distress” (65:17,15). As much
as we want world peace, universal
justice and the fulfdlment of the des
tiny for which God has created us, so
much more does God will it.
God has not, is not, and will not be
unresponsive when his children truly
seek him. “Before they call, 1 will an
swer, while they are yet speaking I
will hear” (65:24). Is God listening?
Yes! Are you?
Lancaster Fanning
Established 1955
Published Every Saturday
Ephrata Review Building
1 E. Main St.
Ephrata, PA 17522
-by
Lancaster Farming, Inc.
A Steinman Enterprise
William J. Burgess General Manager
Andy Andrews, Editor
Copyright 2002 by Lancaster Farming