' r u '< ,~,r 1 c • J V 01.47 No. 17 Storybook Exhibit Showcases Farm Life History In Southwestern Pa. The Somerset Historical Center, located off Rt. 601 north of Somerset on Rt. 985, looks much like a big red barn to complement the farming history exhibit it houses on the inside. The center, along with its nonprofit entity, the Historical and Genealogical Society of Somerset County, works to preserve the history of southwestern Pennsylva nian agriculture in a state-run facility. Photo by Sandra Lepley, Somerset Co. correspondent Hinton Named Outstanding Young Farmer At Virginia Convention GAY BROWNLEE Virginia Correspondent WYTHEVILLE (Wythe County, Va.) Jeffrey Hinton of Heathsville was named Vir Lancaster Farming’s quarterly exclusive booklet, Dairy Plus, begins its 2002 season this issue, devoted to manure management. Special features include a story about a dairy family who installed a manure system in Bangor, nu trient management concerns and the future of state and federal policy, manure management guidelines, improving milk quality, managing odors, and an update on a calf clon ing project. www.lancasterfarming.com ginia’s Outstanding Young Farmer recently during the 52nd Annual Convention of the Young Farmers of Virginia and 10th Annual Convention of the Four Sections Virginia FFA Alumni at the Holiday Inn. Hinton, his dad, James, and late brother. Jimmy in 1997 es tablished a corporation comprised of the 188-acre family farm in Lara and other Senate Farm Bill Heads To Joint Conference Economist Explains Unique Northeast Dairy Program DAVELEFEVER Lancaster Farming Staff UNIVERSITY PARK (Centre Co.) The U.S. Senate passed their version of the new Farm Bill last week by a vote of 58-40. The House Ag Committee and the Senate Ag Committee will form a conference commit tee to negotiate the differences in the Senate bill and the House version passed last fall. The Senate bill contains a dairy title that would provide support for dairy producers in 12 northeast dairy states includ ing Connecticut, Delaware Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylva nia, Rhode Island, Vermont, and West Virgina. According to the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), the program would provide dairy producers in those states with a payment whenever the monthly Class I (fluid milk) price falls below $16.94 per hun dredweight. Ken Bailey, Penn State dairy economist, recently analyzed the provision and the effect it may have on the region’s dairy pro ducers. While a relatively small amount of Farm Bill funds go to dairy programs nationwide, this Saturday, FebrasitysaivUM state " . . .nr>A .Tirr» SANDRA LEPLEY Somerset Co. Correspondent SOMERSET Co.) The history of farming in southwestern Pennsylvania is showcased through a unique ex The thresher and farming steam engine are impressive artifacts in a farming exhibit at the Somerset Historical Center. Vernon Berkey, president of Historical and Genea logical Society of Somerset County, left, Charlie Fox (in back), administrator at the center, and Barbara Black, cu rator, look over some of the equipment. Photo by Sandra Lepley, Somerset Co. correspondent land the brothers had begun to invest in back in 1986. Their discipline and patience in the years following their high school graduation was owing to their shared childhood dream to be full-time farmers, like their new provision is significant, ac cording to Bailey. “It’s huge,” he said. Targeted to dairy farms with about 400 cows or less, the meas ure would provide significant payments to farmers in the ab sence of a Northeast interstate dairy compact removed from Farm Bill legislation last year. The program is less contro versial than an interstate com pact, and the benefit to northeast producers would likely be about equal to that pro vided by a compact, according to Bailey. “One of its biggest advantages is that it’s not a compact,” MADMC Conference Draws 400 MICHELLE KUNJAPPU Lancaster Farming Staff YORK (York Co.) From towering brick buildings in the center of the city, to roadside stands, to family-run farm stores, producers have used vari ous venues to market their wares. This week a conference helped to disseminate ideas and information for farmers inter ested in marketing directly to consumers. The Mid Atlantic Direct Mar keting Conference (MADMC), $ 4.00 Per Year hibit called “Patterns On The Land; Farming In Southwestern Pennsylvania,” which opened late last summer as a full-scale (Turn to Page A3O) dad and granddad. Every dollar they earned was invested, along with plenty of muscle, and even tually the tally was 750 acres for harvesting corn, soybeans, wheat, and barley. (Turn to Page A 27) Bailey said. “The compact was extremely controversial.” Under the new Farm Bill pro vision, payment levels and inter state trade would be regulated by Congress instead of a panel ot board members as the interstate compact would have done. “You’re not turning pricing over to a citizen’s panel,” Bailey said. The new program will also use taxpayer dollars instead of milk processor monies, as would have resulted from an interstate compact. The Northeast Dairy Program will likely have less effect than a (Turn to Page A3l) hosted by the Pennsylvania Retail Farm Market Associa tion, Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture and Penn State Cooperative Extension, is actu ally a joint effort of these organ izations in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, and Virginia, be sides Pennsylvania. The event attracted 400 participants from across the U.S. Preconference workshops in cluded a seminar at the York Central Market House, a fruit basket seminar, a community (Turn to Page A2B) 75C Per Copy
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