What’s For Dinner If The Checkoff Ends? Beef Council Looks At Options DAVE LEFEVER Lancaster Farming Staff GRANTVILLE (Dauphin Co.) The Pennsylvania Beef Coun cil (PBC) this week addressed the possibility of the national beef checkoff program coming to an end. The council’s annual dinner and business meeting took place at the Grantville Holiday Inn Wednesday evening. The meal featured new beef products that the checkoff program helped launch this year, including shoul der tenders and cheeseburger fries. “We need a checkoff pro gram,” said Paul Slayton, PBC executive director. “I can’t imag ine this world without a check off.” By Jan. 27, 2004 the U.S. Su preme Court must decide wheth er they will hear the case for the constitutionality of the checkoff program, which was originally challenged in U.S. District Court in South Dakota in 2002, then tailed to be upheld in the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals this past July. If the Supreme Court decides to hear testimony for the national checkoff, the case would likely be brought late in 2004 and the deci sion made sometime in 2005, Slayton said. Under the national beef check off program, producers pay $1 for each head of beef cattle they market to help fund beef promo tion in the country. “If (the Supreme Court) decid es not to hear the case, we shut the door, turn out the lights, and go home,” Slayton said. Given that possibility, Slayton posed a challenge to the group to work with the Pennsylvania De partment of Agriculture on devel oping a state-wide beef market ing program through the advocacy of other farm groups in the state. “When do you want to stand up and put something in place?” Slayton said. Members approved a motion to move forward with such a propo sition. Because PBC itself could not legally spearhead the project, Slayton said the initiative would need to come from organizations such as the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau and Pennsylvania Cattle men’s Association (PCA). Terry Shearer, PCA president, said he would ask members of his organization to form a comittee to move ahead with the initiative. Dennis Wolff, Pennsylvania agriculture secretary, spoke about the possibility of develop ing a Pennsylvania beef market ing act, similar to programs al ready in place for several other commodities in the state, includ ing apples, milk, vegetables, and wine. Developing this kind of in state checkoff program “takes some time,” Wolff said, noting that it would be about two years from its approval until beef promotion funds would start to flow. Frank Stoltzfus, PCB board member and PCA representative, said that, although “the national program has benefits that we’re never going to have from a state program,” a Pennsylvania check off could also offer a unique op portunity. “We could do a fairly reasona ble job of marketing beef to a sec tor of the nation where the people are,” Stoltzfus said. Some PCB members expressed concern that Pennsylvania beef producers may reject a state checkoff referendum if all pro ducers are allowed one vote, re gardless of the size of their opera tion. “If we had a referendum in the state, it would be a ... close vote,” said Bill McCoy, ex-officio National Cattlemen’s Beef Asso ciation representative. Dr. John Comerford of Penn State noted that the original checkoff vote in 1988 passed by a large majority, and that producer size shouldn’t be a concern. Slayton listed promotion activ ities funded by national checkoff. Beef demand in the U.S. has in creased by 10 percent in the past five years, reversing a 20-year downward trend. According to Slayton, that’s Lancaster Farming, Saturday, December 20, 2003-A35 hard proof that the checkoff pro gram and its “Beef: It’s What’s for Dinner” campaign works. He said beef promotion through the checkoff brings producers about $2OO more per head. The checkoff has a lot to do with the record high cattle prices producers have enjoyed this fall, according to Slayton. “It irks me when people say it was because they shut down the (Canadian) border,” he said. “Yes, that’s eight percent less beef, but there are a lot of other things going on.” This year, PBC pushed for the initiation of “May Beef Month,” which was announced by Gov. Ed Rendell and featured PBC serving grilled hamburgers at the “Great Pennsylvania Workout Day” at the Capitol. Other PBC work in the state this year included a campaign to promote Pennsyl vania’s Beef Qual ity Assurance (BQA) program, with a focus on certifying dairy producers. This promotion kicked off in timely fash ion on May 19 one day before the BSE (bovine spongiform en cephalopathy) case was an nounced in Cana- “Issues management” is proba bly the most important function of the national checkoff program, according to Slayton. After BSE hit the news, beef promoters quickly spread word that the U.S. beef supply was safe. “Consumer confidence really didn’t waver,” Slayton said. Wolff Appoints New Director HARRISBURG (Dauphin Co.) On Thurs day, Secretary of Agriculture Dennis C. Wolff announced that Earl M. Haas has been named director of the Bureau of Plant Industry. “The Bureau of Plant Industry plays a crit ical role in protecting agriculture in Pennsylva nia and the United States,” said Wolff. “I am pleased that Earl has accepted this post as he has the knowledge and experience necessary to deal with the many plant and crop-related chal lenges we encounter in agriculture.” Haas joined the department in 1982 as an ag ricultural products inspector in the southeast re gion. In his new role, Haas will be responsible for consumer protection in areas ranging from animal feed and greenhouse products to pesti cides. Overseeing 85 full-time employees and up to 90 temporary employees, Haas will also di rect programs in areas of farm safety, sustain able agriculture, and plant certification. November Fluid Milk Price Announced HARRISBURG (Dauphin Co.) The Penn sylvania Milk Marketing Board (PMMB) re cently announced the prices to be paid to Penn sylvania dairy farmers for November Class 1 milk (beverage) as an average of $18.42 in the western areas of the state and an average of $18.91 in central and eastern areas. These prices include the over-order premium of $1.65 per one hundred pounds of milk. Farmers, whose milk production is pooled under a federal order, will receive a market wide blend price based upon the value of all classes of milk. However, the blend price re ceived will vary as the component composition of a farmer’s milk differs from the established benchmarks of 3.5 percent butterfat, 2.99 pei cent protein, and 5.69 percent other solids. Over-Order Premium $1.65 HARRISBURG (Dauphin Co.) Pennsylva nia Milk Marketing Board Chairman Boyd E. Wolff recently announced that board members have voted unanimously to continue the current level of the over-order premium. The over-order Stop the Rats Qeir Trad& V^ s tozol $49.00f0r a 10 lb. bucket Bulb Dusters for Easy Application j Restricted Use Pesticide Must [ IhiVv. anient ipplie Hoi s license 1 717-484-2233 Paul Slayton premium is paid on Class I (bottled) milk produced, processed, and sold within the state. The over-order premium of $1.65 was due to expire Dec. 31. As a result of this vote, the $1.65 over-order premi um will be maintained at $1.65 Jan. 1 through June 30. This action is the re sult of a hearing con ducted Dec. 3 in re sponse to a petition submitted by the Penn sylvania Farm Bureau.
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