Teleconference Addresses Farm Bill, Dairy Market MICHELLE KUNJAPPU Lancaster Farming Staff LANCASTER (Lancaster Co.) Producers and industry repre sentatives tuned in to a telecon ference last week to hear about the upcoming Farm Bill from Joel Rotz, dairy specialist for the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, and the dairy market outlook from Ken Bailey, assistant professor of agriculture economics, Penn State. The teleconference occurs sev eral times throughout the year and usually includes an outlook on the dairy market by Bailey Workshops Focus On Milking Performance UNIVERSITY PARK (Centre Co.) Wanted: Progressive dairy owners and managers seeking to increase performance in their milking center. Dairy producers know that they need to get outstanding per formance from their milking fa cilities. Outstanding performance demands that everyone working in the milking area knows their job and is encouraged to do it well. It also demands that the milking equipment and staff work together to create a com fortable and productive environ ment for cows. Milking Center Management is an intensive, two-day workshop designed to teach dairy farm owners and managers the skills they need to get top performance from their milking facilities and cows. Managers will learn from leading experts about how to im- and an additional guest. Exten sion offices across the Common wealth host the discussions. According to Rotz members of the House and Senate are pres enting their respective versions of the Farm Bill in conference dis cussions. Their goal is to have the Farm Bill completed before the Easter recess. Both the House and Senate commit to an extension of dairy price support, however differ ences in this price support exist. One difference is that the Sen ate’s program splits the country into the northeast (12 states) and prove milking speed, limit masti tis, increase quality, and boost productivity. The workshops will be limited in size so that participants can get maximum opportunity to in teract with the experts and other managers in the audience. In structors designed all material to be practically applied, so partici pants can take the knowledge and tools home and immediately use them for their own milking center management. In addition. Milking Center Management participants will have an opportunity to stay in contact with fellow participants and instructors from the course. This unique opportunity will help participants to get continuing support and advice as they make changes at their own farm. The workshop is designed to bring about profitable change and im provement in your dairy opera tion. the rest of the country. Producers in the northeast are eligible for a payment whenever the monthly Class I (fluid milk) price falls below $16.94 per hundredweight. Both have an eight million pound eligibility level, which translates into a farm of less than 400 cows. Although there is a large dis parity in money available be tween the two regions, the plan actually brings equity in the total Farm Bill, since southern and midwestern grain farmers receive substantial support under the bill. Both bills would require coun tries exporting milk to the U.S. to Milking Center Management will be offered in two locations from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day: • Tuesday, April 9 and Wednesday, April 10 at the Ath erton Hotel, 125 S. Atherton St., State College. • Thursday, April 18 and Fri day, April 19 at the Holiday Inn Harrisburg/Hershey, Exit 28 off Rt. 1-81, Grantville. For more information about the short course, contact Richard Ship at (814) 652-6430 or Rich- Stup@psu.edu. To register for the course, contact the Conference and Short Course office at (814) 865-8301, or visit our website at http://conferences.cas.psu.edu/. This program is sponsored by Land O’ Lakes, Inc., Dean Dairy Products/Wengert’s Dairy, Dairylea Cooperative, Dairy Farmers of America’s Northeast Council, and DeLaval. Bulls At Sale HARRISBURG (Dau phin Co.) With only two weeks to go, Agriculture Secretary Sam Hayes re minded beef producers of the announced 2002 Bull Performance 1 cst and Sale being hosted by the Penn sylvania Department of Agriculture (PDA) on Fri day, March 29. The sale will begin at 11 a.m. at the Ag Arena at the University Park Campus. Sixty-eight beef bulls will go across the auction block. “The Bull Test and Sale exemplifies the best of Pennsylvania's beef indus try,” Hayes said. mmi n-. •' ■ -Sij BT ' IL SJI K" "*| n r 1 fr. : *... ..-n^ fe: ..Id^a ;urance icle, ig farm ic state. pay checkoff fees. Both versions also include au thorization of a Johnes Disease Control Program. The program, however, is only authorized and lacks funding. Conservation of natural re sources is a priority item in the Farm Bill. “This will pump a lot of new money into the farm pro gram to help conservation pro grams,” said Rotz. There will now be additional support for manure storage, soil erosion, streambank fencing, stream BEAVER (Beaver Co.) Pennsylvanians who rely on a private well, spring or cistern may be drinking tap water that contains some form of contamination, according to a Penn State Cooperative Ex tension educator. “Between 60 and 70 percent of all private well water sup plies in the state don’t meet all drinking water safety: stan dards,” said Susan Boser, water quality agent. There are about one million private water supplies in Pennsylva nia, mostly springs and wells fed by groundwater, and about 20,000 new wells are drilled in the state every year. To address these problems, water specialists from Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences and the Environ mental Resources Research Institute will offer a live satel lite clinic, which will be down ON appv quiptw Open House. Pictured above are this year’s winners of $1,500 toward the purchase of Jamesway parts: mm Roberta and Dave Rotelle and their children (L to R) Mary Kate, A.J., Hope & Joy. The Rotelles Farm 82 acres in Honey Brook, PA, and have a 50 stall cow barn. 1 st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place 4th Place sth Place 6th Place 7th Place JD Ram Gauge Abner King, Gordonville Lapp's would like to thank everyone who came and made this our most successful open house ever—we fed over 650 people' Lancaster Farming, Saturday, March 16,2002-A37 Clinic To Help Western Pa. Residents Ensure Safe Drinking Water- * ***«* % *■s * \ 4 I **