Does High Production Come With Too High A Price? MICHELLE KUNJAPPU Lancaster Farming Staff LEBANON (Lebanon Co.) At a late-winter meeting sponsored by the agriculture group of Fulton and Lebanon Valley Farmers Bank, area producers gathered for the 24th annual luncheon seminar. The Lebanon Valley Expo Center hosted the sem inar, which drew more than 450 producers and in dustry representatives. Jeffrey D. Brose, DVM, technical service special ist, Monsanto Dairy Business, discussed “Banking on Higher Milk Production” to start the seminar. “Is high milk production really more profitable?” asked Brose. “What is the cost of high production? It has a cost in stress.” Even with these considerations, Brose said, higher production does help the farm’s bottom line. Brose asked dairy producers to think about their profit margin. “Is the milk that you sell equal? Does it all have the same profit margin? “As you improve your production level, the profit margin gets greater for that next pound of milk. As we do something to improve your milk production, expenses are greater but hopefully there is more Make Up Time When Making Hay or Haylage - Spin Dry Drawbar & 3-pomt models Hydraulic vertical fold and manual rear fold models ♦ Exclusive long-lasting Digidrlve™ drive couplings used on GF 5001 and above models www.dcequip.com profit margin,” he said. Higher production allows a producer to spread fixed costs getting more milk from the same amount of cows by improving cow comfort or giving more feed From left stands Ken Bailey, associate professor of dairy markets and policy, Penn State; Lou Moore, professor of ag econom ics, Penn State; Mike Firestine, senior vice president ag loan officer, Fulton Bank; and Jeffrey Brose, Monsanto Dairy Business. 16 Models available in working widths from 10*2" to 24‘ 720 Wheeler School Rd. Whiteford, MD 21160 1-800-551-6567 460 Limestone Rd. Oxford, PA 19363 1-800-255-6567 315 Main St. Clayton, Delaware 19938 1-800-367-2726 (Turn to Page 24) Best for Merging is Heavy wet Windrows windrow )pmg=No slugging chopper headlands other rakes can't Best tor Drying Most types of rakes roll the hay across the ground, twisting it into a '■qht windrow that can't , Rotary takes lift and carry hay 'forkful by fork ful" to form a light,fluffy windrow, which has result Hay raked with a owing generally has about a o unraked hay And with less
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