Vote INo1, in the

Wheat Producer Poll

MFBPresident EltonSmith participated Inan AFBFconferencecall to learn thedetails of the wheatproducer poll.

Nearly a generation ago, thenation's wheat producerssoundly rejected an attempt toimpose mandatory productioncontrols. Those prod~cers whovoted in the 196.3nationalwheat referendum stood theirground against governmentcontrol of agriculture. The re-sounding "no" vote they deliv-ered turned aside talk of quotasand' production controls for allcommodities for many years.

Now a new generation of pro-ducers must answer'with un-equivocable opposition to man-datory controls. Once again, theburden of choice falls on theshoulders of wheat producers.

The 1985 farm bill requiresthe USDAto poll the nation'swheat growers to detenpine thepopularity 'of using mandatoryproduction and marketing con-trols. Although vigorously pro-moted by supply control advo-cates in Congress, this minoritycould not obtain the votesnecessary to make controls apart of the new four-year farmbill. They did succeed, however,in obtaining a requirement for anon-binding poll of wheat pro-ducers, which the secretary ofagriculture must n'ow conductbefore July 1, 1986.

The adage of separating thewheat from the chaff is espe-cially true in the so-called poll.The question being polled iswhether producers would favorproduction ;md marketing con-trols in exc,hange for a guaran-teed price equal to 125% of thecost of production. Those whointerpret the polling as being ascientific, impartial determina-tion of producer opinion, willfind that they are sadlymistaken.

RURAL LIVING, JUNE 1986

It is merely a "straw vote" -not scientifically reliable, andwoefully lacking the basic infor-mation that producers musthave to make a thoughtful man-agement decision. The poll willnot inform farmers in advanceabout how much land theymust t~lke out of wheat produc-tion. No information has beenmade available to indicate whatother crops coul~ be planted,nor how many head of livestockcould be grazed on those idledacres.

Proponents of such produc-tion controls call this a "newidea" and tout the plan as theanswer to the commodity'sprice and supply problems. Infact, controls and quotas arenot a new idea. This 'concepthas repeatedly failed in manycountries of the world. withmany different commodities., Not only are such controls not

new, they are outmoded. Ig-riored is the fact that U.S.agriculture competes in an in-ternation~:l1market. Foreign pro-ducers are 'delighted to see theU.S., the world's largest ex-porter, relinquish our marketshares to their expanded pro-duction capacity.

The recent past provides aclear cut example. In responseto artificially high price supportsfor U.S.wheat established in the1977 and 1981 ,farm legislation,Austrialian wheat production isup 80% and Argentine produc-tion has jumped 115%.

Today's producer cannot af-ford to be useq as a paw~ bysupply control advocates whosepolitical objective is govern-ment control (or all of agricul-ture. Anything less than anemphatic "no" vote by wheatproducers would encourage

legislation calling' for the con-trol measures for wheat produc-tion. Make no misfake - if sup-ply control proponents gain thistoehold in agriculture, they willpush for controls in other com-modities. I

Farm Bureau leaders acrossthe nation reaffirmed the organ-ization:s commitment to servethe best interests of all of agri-culture in the 1986 Farm Bu-reau policy setting session inAtlanta, Ga. Voting delegatesstated specifically that nationalfarm policy decisions must rec-ognize' that all commodities areinterrelated and that anychange in the supply, demandor price of one affects the 'others.

In these difficult economictimes, producers may be tempt-ed to sacrifice their commit-ment to a market-orientedagriculture for ,short-term in-come gains. In the long run,however, the only way pro-ducers can benefit from theirfarm assets is to produce. Atbest, mandatory production andmarketing controls guaranteeonly short-lived profits that willdisappear when the domesticand international markets haveresponded to such artificial at-tempts to bolster farm income.

Agriculture has a positive andproductive future ahead. Guar-antee yourself the opportunityto produce for a profit; notgovernment payments. Vote"NO" in the wheat producer pollbefore June 15, 19861

Elton R. Smith, PresidentMichigan Farm Bureau

.3

4

FRONT & CENTER

Tbe USDAbas designated July 7-II for statewide ele~tions of individual pork pro-.ducers for possible ~ppointme.nt to an industry-wide cc;»mmlttee that will administer apromotion, research and consumer information order for pork. Candidates receiving thehighest number of votes in Michigan will be eligible for appointment by the secretary ofagriculture to the state's three positions on the National Pork Producers Delegate Body. Thedelegate body will consist of approximately 165 producers, including two or more representingeach of the 50 states, and four importers. It will be responsible for administering all aspects ofthe pork order .. ' I '

Voting will take place at county Extension offices during regular business hours. Producersare urged to vote in person, but if not possible, an absentee voting packet containing a ballotand registration form may be obtained from Jim Epstein, National Pork Producers Election, P.O.Box 23762, Washington, D.C. 20026-3762. Absentee ballots must be postmarked by July 11and received no later than July 18. Votes will be tallied locally by ASCSofficials and results for-warded to the USDAsecretary.

, Tbe ~intb biennial Capitol Bean Day Willbe beld June 10 from 11:15 a.m. to 2 p.m.on the east lawn of the state capitol. Capitol Bean Day is co-sponsored by the Michigan BeanCommission, the Gratiot County Farm Bureau Women and the Fairgrove-Labor Day BeanFestival Committee. Special guests during the celebration will include Gov. James Blanchardand several members of the state Legislature.

Look for tbe big yellow and wblte Farm Bureau and affiliated companies tent atAg Expo '86, July 22-24 at Michigan State University. The tent will be on lots 248, 249, 348and 349, the same location as last year, and will feature exhibits by MFB,Farmers PetroleumCooperative, Farm Bureau Insurance Group and MFBGroup Purchasing. Endorsed by the NorthAmerican Farm Show Council, Ag Expo will feature a 35-acre central exhibit' area. It will beopen Tuesday and Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Thursday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

F9rmal dedication ceremonies for tbe MSUClarksville Uorticultural ExperimentStation will be conducted on June 17. The dedication begins at 5 p.m. The station will be opento the public 7-9 p.m~ for tours. The station com'pI:ises440 acres of research sites for all typesof vegetable and fruit production. When it is' fully qev~loped, it will be one of the foremost hor-ticultu~al experiment stations in the wor!d. The station is located in western Ionia Countyalong'I-96, approximately 20 miles east of ~ra.nd Rapids and 45 miles west of Lansing.

Western Micbigan University is offering a number of scbolarsbips for studentswbo are enrolled or plan to enroll in agriculture or agribusiness programs during the1986 fall semester. The grants will include $400 for students who are presently in high schoolor a community college; two Lee O. Baker scholarships of $500 each will be awarded to currentstudents as well as several $400 'awards. Inquiries regarding the WMUag program and scholar-ships should be directed to the Agriculture Program, Department of Consumer Resources andTechnology, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, Mich. 49008.

MFBGrpup Purcbasing's Summer Implement Par~s S~le will be June 23-July 16.Steel products available will include sickle assemblies and guards, gathering chain, combinetwin point conversions, roller chain, slash points and much more. To develop a better unde~-standing of products available, a series of sale kick-off meetings will be held around the state.Dates.and locations are June 23, Aldrich's Restaurant, Frankenmuth, 7p.m.; June 24, JacksonCounty FB office, 7 p.m.; June 25, Tift's Restaurant, Howard City, 8 p.m.; and June 26, GraylingHoliday Inn, 7 p.m. ~or more information on the meetings or to find out the name of your localsteel vendor, call your co~nty FB secretary ..

Tbe annual reopening period for FB's bealtb plan subscribers is June 6-20. Duringthis time, members will have the opportunity to make changes in their coverage and add adependent child between the ages of 19 and 25, if eligible. All processed changes will be effec-tive with the Aug. 20 billing. Watch your mailbox for more information from Blue Cross BlueShield of Michigan and Health Maintenance Organizations in partidpatingcounties. To applyfor a change, contact your county FB secretary between June 6 and 20.

RURAL LIVING, JUNE 1986

LEGISLATIVE REVIEW

Wheat Producer Poll to Take Place This Month

Wheat Producer Poll - TheUSDAwill conduct an informalpoll of wheat producers nation-wide to determine whetherthere is industry support formandatory production controls.The poll. which will take placein June, is required by the 1985farm bill. Results of the poll areadvisory and further action is atthe discretion of the secretaryof agriculture.

.Uealth Insurance Deduc-tions for the Self-Employed- By unanimous vote,. the20-member Senate FinanceCommittee reported the taxreform legislation to the Senatefor consideration. The bill in-cludes a provision allowing self-employed persons a tax deduc-tion of one-half of their healthinsurance premiums.

Support for the health in-surance premium deduction isalso provided in a separate bill,S. 240.3. The bill has been co-sponsored by Sen. Don Riegle.

Dairy Buyout - A recentcourt order issued in Texasgave the USDAuntil June 1 toissue new rules for the $1.8billion program to reduce thenation's dairy herd by 1.5million animals over the next18 months. USDAUndersecre-tary Daniel G. Amstutz said thecourt order does not end the,buyout program but will requiresome modification. At issue isinterpretation of the rulelimiting slaughter of dairy.animals to a total of 7% of thenation's herd in anyone year.

It is not clear whether the9,502 dairy farmers who havecontracted to sell more than6.3.3,000cows, 216,000 heifersand 165,000 calves during thefirst marketing period would

RURAL LIVING, JUNE 1986

have to accept modifications intheir' contracts to remain eligi-ble for the program.

1987 Budget Bill - TheSenate passed a budget bill thatmeets the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings deficit target of $144million for next year. It remainsto be seen whether PresidentReagan will go along with the$13 billion in new taxes for1987. Sen. Phil Gramm, chiefsponsor of the defiCit reductionlegislation, said he will recom-mend the president approve thenew taxes for the 1987 budget,but would oppose additional taxincreases in the following years.

FIFRAReauthorization -Sen. Jesse Helms has intro-duced an FB-backed bill (S.2.346) to revise the Federal In-secticide, Fungicide and Roden-ticide Act.

The bill contains languagewhich would provide farmer li-ability protection. The sectionwould exempt an ag produceror applicator from liability forany damages related to pesti-cide application unless he orshe "acted unreasonably withregard to such pesticide use orapplication." Application incompliance with label instruc-tion would be considered evi-dence of reasonable use..

Ag Credit - At this writing,160 House members and 57U~S.senators have signed as co-sponsors of the concurrent res-olution (HCR.310) expressingthe sense of the Congress insupport of ag loan restructuringactions by commercia] banksand the Farm Credit System.Congressmen supporting theresolution include MichiganSens. Levin and Riegle, and

Reps. Carr, Davis, Henry, Kildee,Levin, Schuette, Siljander, Trax-ler, Vander Jagt and' Wolpe..

A related announcementcame from the Farm Credit Ad-ministration indicating that thecredit agency would institute adebt restructuring plan for agloans. In many ways the planwould resemble FB's debt re-structuring pl~n. In addition,the Farm Credit Administrationhas announced its intention to

, lower interest rates on FederalLand Bank loans by 1%.

Omnibus Trade Bill - TheHouse Ways and Means Commit-tee has amended the omnibustrade bill to make treatment ofag products more consistent inantidumping and countervailingduty cases.

The amendment is intendedto apply to cases such as therecent International Trade Com-mission decision on Canadianhogs and pork in which the ITCruled that hog producers andpacking companies did nothave common interest. Theamendment would also ensurethat foreign producers do not

. escape countervailing duties byadding a small increment ofvalue to an ag product throughprocessing.

The committee also unani-mously approved an amend-ment introduced by Rep. BillSchuette which would prohibitforeign agricultural interestsfrom receiving state or local taxexempt bonds for the purposeof establishing agriculturaloperations in the U.S.

5

Sales Tax Exemption Proposed for Grain Bins

Sales Tax on Grain Bins -S.B. 738 and 739, which wouldexempt "portable grain bins"from sales tax, are on the Sen-ate floor. Portable is defined asa bin which is "designed to bedisassembled without signifi-cant damage to its componentparts." FB supports the legisla-tion. It is opposed by theTreasury Department.

Sales tax on grain bins hasbeen an issue for some time,with one court ruling they aretaxable and another court rul-ing they are not.

As introduced, the bills alsocontained a sales tax exemp-tion for tile used for farm drain-age. The Senate Finance Com-mittee amended'this out of thebill, saying that tile is "per-manently affixed" and becomesa "structural part of realestate." Present law does notpermit exemption for such use.

Crop Gleaning - H.B. 4494would extend the farmers' taxcredit for gleaning through1988 and increase the creditfrom the present 10% to 20%.The credit is based on thewholesale value of the gleanedcrops. FB supports the legisla-tion.

Charitable organizations"glean" fields and orchards forleftovers or unharvested prod-ucts. The gleaned food is proc-essed and used by charitablefood kitchens 'located through-out the state. There are also 12food banks in Michigan whichprovide food for charity.

6

Ag Labor Camps - H.B.5538 has been introduced toput into law the dates that arerequired to provide heating fa-cilities in seasonal housing.Presently regulations requireheating before May 31 and afterSept. 1. H.B. 5538 wouldchange the September date tothe 15th.

Water Planning Commis-sion - S.B. 629 passed theSenate some time ago; it is nowon the House floor. It requiresthat the IS-member Great Lakesand Water Resources PlanningCommission be increased to 16.The additional member mustrepresent agriculture and wouldbe appointed by the governor.

The original legislation /creating the commission alsorequired ag representation.However, the commission wasappointed by three differentpeople :- the governor, speakerof the House and Senate majori-ty leader - and agriculture wasinadvertently left out.

FB has insisted that agricul-ture be properly represented asit probably has more at stakethan any other segment of theeconomy.

Gas Tax Refund - If passed,S.B. 741 would permit farmersto claim a gas tax refund ontheir state income tax the sameas they do now on the federalincome tax. Presently the taxrefund can be claimed up toone year from date of purchaseby filing special forms.

The bill was amended to allowfarmers to claim the refundunder either the present taxsystem or new income tax sys-tem. FB supports the bill asamended. It is now on theSenate floor.

Bottles - Wine cooler bot-tles have become a problem asthrow-aways.

FB supported new regulationsby the Liquor Control Commis-sion to require a deposit onwine coolers so they would bereturnable the same as beerand soft drink containers arenow. However, the legislativeJoint Committee on Administra-tive Rules defeated the pro-posal. Committee membersbelieved extending the law towine coolers by regulation,would be unconstitutional.

Bills are being introduced toamend the law. H.B. 5510,sponsored by Rep. CharlesMueller, would not only bringwine coolers under tt)e law, itwould also include all alcoholicbeverage bottles. Rep. Muellerbelieves that all grain-basedspirits should be included inthe bottle bill, and has askedthe attorney general for anopinion.

FB policy maintains that suchbottles should be includedbecause they constitute aserious litter problem alongroadsides and in, the fields.

If the Legislature does notact, there may be a petitiondrive to put the issue on theballot. The present law, whichpassed in 1976, resulted from apetition drive and vote of thepeople. FB was one of thestrong leaders in that effort.

P.A. 116 Tax Refund - H.B.4788 has passed the House andis expected to pass the Senate.The bill would require that taxstatements 'furnished with P.A.116 participants' tax returns

(continued on page 22)

RURAL LlVINO, JUNE 1986

UPPLY & DEMAND'The Issue Behind the Buyout

By Connie Turbin

Announcement of the wholeherd buyout program barelycaused a ripple in the milk tankat the Gasper family dairy farmin Ionia County. Lewis and KenGasper, father and son partnersin the operation, say they neverreally considered entering theprogram, but they're concernedthat more "tinkering" with theindustry isn't going to returndairying to the supply and de-mand balance that existed be-fore the 1977 farm bill.

It's not the individual pro-grams that they disagree with,the men say. Rather they feelfrustrated by the year-to-year"fix it" plans.

"It bothers me," Ken says."Fir,st the industry jumped onthe diversion program, then thebuyout and already everyone,istalking about quotas. Goodmanagers are being buffeted bythese swings in the dairy pro-gram and those who are havingproblems just don't have theflexibility to respond."

Ken and Lewis favor a two-tiered pricing system for baseand surplus milk similar to thatwhich was in effect prior to1977. "The base-surplus systemgives the producer some price

RURAL LlVINO, JUNE 1986

protection and provides someproduction controls," Ken says."1 like the system because itleaves the decision in the handsof the dairyman. If there's amilk surplus, the support pricewill be adjusted downward. Ifyou want to produce that extra10% of milk and get, say $3.00(per cwt.),you can go aheadand do it - if you can affordto."

Year to year "tinkering" with the,dairy program concerns ,activeproducers like Ken and LewisGasper, partners in Lew-MaxFarms. They favor a two-tier.pric-ing system for base and surplusmilk.

Lewis agrees. "Until this prob-1E:~mis under control it's goingto cost us one way or another- whether we pay for the pro-gram, or the support pricedrops. Under the buyout pro-gram, we'll pay the assessmentand still watch the supportprice drop."

The struggle to remain profit-able in a troubled industry hasbeen frustrating for Elwood andEleanor Schwartz. After a life-time of dairying on the family'sAllegan County farm, the couple,now 62 years old, were lookingforward to retirement in justthree years. But when the an-nouncement of the whole herdbuyout program was made, theSchwartzes made the decision

At Lew-Max Farms in Ionia Coun-ty, the Gaspers will continue tomilk 80 cows twice a day, sevendays a week. According to Ken,herd production has remainedrelatively constant over the pasttwo or three years. There is noplan to increase production.

7

The dairy herd buyout programaccelerated retirement planning \for Elwood and Eleanor Schwartz.If they had stayed in the dairybusiness, said Elwood, antici-pated equipment repair and re-placement costs would have fur-ther eroded their dairy farm in-come.

Dairy operations will continue on the Schwartz Dairy Farm in AlleganCounty until February 1987. Their bid for the second marketing periodwas part of the tax planning they discussed with a tax specialist at thetime of the program announcement. The Schwartzes will farm cashcrops and raise beef animals for the next three years.

to accelerate their retirementplan. A bid to eliminate theirherd of 180 dairy animals in thesecond marketing period was,entered and accepted.

"Fortunately for us, the an-nouncement came at tax timeand we talked it over prettythoroughly with our tax man.Without the program, we wouldhave waited until we were both65 and sold the animals at auc-tion," Elwood says.

"The program came at justthe right moment for us. Wehave very little outstandingdebt. Wehaven't made any ma-jor equipment purchases since1970, the herd size has remainedstable at about 85 milkingcows, and our family is grown.If we had stayed in the dairybusin~ss, we would be at thepoint' where repairs and replace-ments would become necessary."

Eleanor and Elwood won'tgive up farming entirely. For atleast the next three years, theywill raise corn, soybeans andbeef cattle on their l50-acre"home farm."

8

Both the Schwartzes and Gas-pers express concern that thewhole herd buyout program isyet another "bandaid" ap-proach to a complex problem ofmatching production to de-mand in the marketplace. Apowerful dairy lobby works hard

, to protect the income and in-vestments of dairy farmers anddairy processors, but these ,farm operators agree that thesupply_control plans developedby the industry and institutedby the government have notreally been beneficial to dairyfarmers nor to agriculture as awhole.

"There seems to be a trend ingovernment of protecting agri-culture from the marketplace,but where has it gotten us?"asks KEm. "I'm concerned thatthe industry may get so pro-tected that it 'will take away theincentive to be a good manager."

Over the years, Elwood says,dairying has been a good farm'enterprise, providing a comfort-able living for his family, but he

does not hesitate to add that inthe past six or seven years, ithas been increasingly difficultto make a profit. "For us and alot of other dairy people it's justbeen a case of hoping you canpay the bills.~'

While these two dairy opera-tors don't hold high hopes thatthe l8-month buyout will "fix"the problems in t,he dairy indus-try, they optimistically view itas another opportunity for theindustry to research and devel-op an economically sound,long-range plan.

, Dairy farmers, both in andout of production, will bewatching and participating indiscussions about future dairypolicy. Whether those solutionsinvolve strict production con-trols through a quota system,or a support price mechanismthat responds to consumer de-mand for fluid milk, the indus-try's remaining producers aren'tlikely to be satisfied with pro-grams that inhibit long-rangeplanning or which will continueto provide artificial productionincentives.

RURAL LIVING, JUNE 1986

Freeze Damage and ,Marketing" ',' , ' ... '.Issues Cballenge Mlcblg~n... 'Fruit Industry Resources

By Cathy J. IHrvan

Three strikes and you're out,right? Not for Michigan's fruitindustry. Despite four nights ofkiller frosts, the USDAsecretary'sdecision to terminate the feder-al marketing order for red tartcherries and foreign apple juiceconcentrate imports depressingU.S. apple prices, industryleaders have not given up hop~that they can turn the situationaround.

It was too early to tell the ex-tent of the frost damage asRural Living went to press, ac-cording to Dr. Jerome Hull, hor-ticulture specialist for the MSU

RURAL LIVING, JUNE 1986

Extension Service. Estimates of .this year's crop will be'made inearly June, after the goodblooms set fruit and damagedblooms drop.

"One'thing you need to keepin mind when you talk aboutkilling frost is,that if there is100% bloom setting fruit, grow-ers would be out taking fruit offthe trees because they couldno~ carry that much fruitthrough to a good, high qualitycrop," Hull said. "On an appletree, if 10% of the flowers setfruit that's a crop. The same is

After four nights of freezingtemperatures this spring,

many growers checked blos-soms to determine the extentof damage in their orchards.

true on a peach tree. If you geta third of a bloom on a cherrytree to setfruit then you've gota crop."

Hull said there is reason to beconcerned about the quality ofthis year's fruit crop. The earlyand unseasonably warm weathercaused tree~ in southwest and.central Michigan to bloom twoto three' weeks early, makingthem especially susceptiblewhen killer frosts hit in lateApril and early May.

9

"An apple tree will have fiveor six flowers and the first toopen is what we refer to as theking bloom," he said. "Thatbloom forms the largest, themost desirable fruit and it'salso the first bud to be killed byfrost."

What is left, Hull said, areside blooms - less.developedflowers that form smaller fruit."It's more of a challenge topollinate and set the sidebloom. But if the side bloomdoes set fruit, we could have anice crop in Michigan thisyear."

Just two days before a severedamaging frost, BlossomtimeFestival queens from 29 south-west Michigan communitiestoured fruit, livestock and dairyfacilities in the area •.

In southwest Michigan, whichwas hit the hardest by the Aprilfreeze, Van Buren County horti-culture Extension agent MikeThomas said the situationvaries greatly from orchard toorchard.

"We've got growers who willhave a full crop if everythinggoes well from now on," hesaid. ':They had good poliina-tion d~ys and they've got blos-soms. But we also have otherswhere you can't find a liveblossom on the tree."

Thomas said most growers inhis area have a "wait and see"

10

attitude. "Nobody's putting anyextra money into anything untilthey get through bloom," hesaid. "fortunately, most of thefruit growers here have had twoor three fairly good years in arow arid if they've been judi-

,cious with their money, theyshould be able to survive this."

Cberry Marketing Orderto be Terminated

A short crop due to frost mayhave positive side effects forthe red tart cherry industry as awhole, said ,Harry A. foster; sec-retary-manager of the MichiganAgricultural Cooperative M~u-:keting Association's Red TartCherry Growers Division.

"It could be a classic exampleof how the federal marketingorder works," he said. "The con-cept of the order is to holdcherries from big crop years infreezer storage and supply themto the market in the shortercrop years."

f<?stersaid the 'cherry indus-try was shocked by the decisionof USDASecretary Richard Lyngto terminate the federal market-ing order on April .30, 1987. Thesecretary announced his inten-tions following the recent refer-endum by growers and proces-sors in the eight states coveredby.the order.

Growers and processors voteby both number and volume. Byvolume, the grower vote was55% in favor of retaining theorder, 45% opposed. By num-ber, the growers defeated theorder by a slim' 20 vote margin,(less than 1%). In order todefeat the market order, proces-sors must oppose it by bothvolume and number. Since theyfavored it by a 60/40 volumeratio but opposed it by number,they voted in favor of the order.

Michigan growers and proces-sors favored the order in bothnumber and volume.

"The secretary considered thereferendum results, which could

have gone either way, and madea politicaf decision to terminatethe order," Foster said. "Con-sidering how close the vote was,he could have decided to leavethe order in place for anotherfive-year period. That wouldhave put everyone on notice toget some of the market orderissues better organized." .

The MACMARed Tart CherryGrowers Marketing Associationis considering spearheading aneffort to write a replacementorder, taking into accouJ:1tthepro.blems surfaced in the closevote. "We're still analyzing ouroptions," Foster said, "but werealize that the 'market orderneeds change. The industry haschanged in many ways sincethe order was written andadopted in 1971 and we hope to

. write an order that will reflectthose changes while continuingto service the marketing needsof the cherry industry."

Foster said one of the biggestproblems of the cherry industryis assuring an adequate supplyof cherries in a short crop year."If there aren't enough cherriesto keep the shelves filied, mar-keters and consumers tend topull away from cherries. Thenwe come along with a crop thatis bigger and have a difficulttime getting enough cherriesback on the shelves to moveenough tonnage to handle thelarger crop.

"With two big crops in 1984-and 1985, we have a larger thannormal carryover," he said. "Ifwe have a shorter crop this yearbecause of the freeze, it willtrigger t~e sale of some ofthose reserve pool 'cherries. Ifthat is the case, then the orderis doing just exactly what it wasdesigned to do.

"The fact that the order isstill in place for a year will giveus the opportunity to demon-strate very clearly that thefederal marketing order wasproperly conceived, properlydesigned and has been a very

RURAL LIVING, JUNE 1986

- Darry Foster, Secretary-ManagerMACMA Red Tart Cherry Growers Division

IIIf we have a shorter crop this year because ofthe freeze, it will trigger the sale of some ofthose reserve pool cherries. If that is the case,then the marketing ,order is doing just exactlywhat is was designed to do.1I

,

able marketing discipline andmarketing self help tool for ourindustry."

Juice Imports DepressU.S. Apple Prices

The apple industry situationis different. Apple growers, too,are waiting for the "June drop"to determine the extent of frostdamage but they're also waitingfor the Il1ternational TradeCommission to decide if theirindustry has been injured byforeign apple juice imports.

As consumerdemand for ap-ple juice began to increaserapidly in the 1970s, domesticgrowers expanded their produc-tion. A five-fold surge in im-ports in less than five yearsresulted in reduced growerprices in all three apple mar-kets - fresh, peeler and juice.

RURAL LIVING, JUNE 1986

The American 'Farm Burea~Federation, with financial sup-port from 28 state FBs includ-ing Michigan, filed a complaintwith the U.S. government. FBcharges that a large share ofthe imported product is madefrom concentrated apple juicethat is subsidized by EasternEuropean countries, trans-shipped through WesternEurope and exported to the U.S.FB is seeking temporary reliefin the form of quotas or tariffs.

Three people representingMichigan's apple industrytestified at the ITC hearing inmid-April.

"It is a tragedy of the great-est magnitude that juice mar-kets developed by the domesticindustry and supported by ouradvertising dollars are lost to

cheap foreign concentrate,"said Jerry Sietsema, a growerfrom Kent County. "It is quiteironic that in a rapidly expand-ing juice market, the share of ,domestic juice used is gettingto be less and less each year."

Pete Morrison, a grower andprocessor from Grand TraverseCounty, testified that Americanapple juice processors cannotoffer growers better prices andstill be competitive in'the mar-ketplace. He said it costs $6.22per gallon to produce concen-trated apple juice in his family'splant. "It is easy to see that wewill not be able to compete forvery long against foreign applejuice concentrate being broughtinto this country at prices rang-ing from $4.75 to $5.15 pergallon."

Tom Butler, manager ofMACMA'sProcessing AppleGrowers Division, told the com-missioners that low demand forjuice apples has" created chaosin the industry." To regain lostjuice revenues, he said fruit ofinferior quality is pushed into 'the peeler and fresh markets,bringing down those prices aswell.

FB's complaint requests relieffor five years. The quotas ortariffs would be based on theamount of juice imported into,this country for the last fiveyears.

"Temporary relief ,would pro-vide incentive for the revitaliza-tion of idled U.S.concentratingcapacity and for construction of

,new plants," Butler said. "Itwould also give domestic con-centrators time to establish acustomer base."

The ITC was expected to de-cide if the industry has been in-jured by the imports during theweek of May 18. If they find inthe growers' favor, there will beanother hearing to determinethe remedy. The ITC will makeits remedy recommendation tothe president in late June. Thepresident has 60 days to takeaction.

11

RURAL EXCHANGE

Cli~ton Young Farmers "old Baby Animal Day

ROBERT DELANO:Private Citizen

Springtime brings baby lambsand Abbigail Asbley, daugbter of:red and Tammy Asbley of St.Jobns, enjoyed sbowing off tbisnewborn to visitors during BabyAnimal Day.

After attending the Washing-ton Legislative Seminar thisyear as a legislative leader, Ihad the privilege of visitingformer AFBF President RobertDelano on his three-generationfamily farm in Virginia.

I was interested in learningwhat his plans were when hOe"returned home" after six yearsas AFBF president and 18 yearsas pre~ident of the VirginiaI:'arm Bureau. What is the form-er president of the nation's

. largest farm organization andleader of trade missions toEurope, Australia and manyother nations going to do tooccupy his time?

Since January, he has returnedto being a deacon at the WarsawBaptist Church, been elected tothe board of directors of a localbank and accepted a positionon the board of the Rappahan-nock Community College Foun-dation. This is all, of course, inaddition to operating his400-acre grain farm.

Along with spending moretime with his wife, Martha, Heenjoys visiting with his father,

12

RURAL RASCALS

Over 300 rural and urban visi-tors participated in the ClintonCounty Young Farmers' BabyAnimal Day in late March. This'was a hands-on event to ac-quaint the community with thelivestock side of farming.

Baby animals, includinglambs, chicks, pigs, calves,bunnies and geese, were avail- .able for petting and feeding.Each family on the tour receiveda pamphlet explaining the par-entage of the baby animals.

who at 89 is still residing onthe "home place," and hischil-dren. His son lives in Richmondwhile his daughter lives "justup the road." Watching himplay with his only grandchild,Richard Gouldin III, makes itclear that much time will bespent in this endeavor.

Former President Delano ex-emplifies Farm Bureau's pur-pose and policy through all hedoes, whether within Farm Bu-reau or not.

I'm sure the Delanos of War-saw, Va., will continue to ac-complish these things and Iwish them well in their "retire-ment:~Dawn Wilkinson, FennvilleAllegan County

Amanda Straub, one of over 300visitors on tbe Baby Animal Daytour, delicately bandies a babycbick. Sbe's tbedaugbter'of'Clin-ton County farmers Boward andMary Jo Straub.

Winning Beef Recipeis a IIlUoneyll

Melissa Mathie,anarti~tfromMorrice, Mich., won the annualMichigan Beef Cook-Off Contestheld May 3 at the Meridian Mall,Okemos. Her recipe 'for honeybaked beef pockets earned herthe $1,000 cash prize.and theopportunity to participate inthe National Beef Cook-Off.

The national competition willtake place Sept. 14, 15 and 16in Dearborn. Contestants will becompeting for over $10,000 inprizes.

Nine contestants participatedin the Michigan contest, whichwas sponsored by the MichiganCattle Women. The MichiganCattle Women will also host thisyear's national contest.

RURAL LIVING, JUNE 1986

Festivals Celebrate Michigan'sDi'verse Agriculture' Industry

The arrival of the long-awaited spring and summer monthssignals the birth of a new growing season in the Great Lakesstate and with it comes the annual parade of fresh fruits,vegetables and commodities from Michigan's orchards,vineyards and fields.

Starting with the maple syrup "run" in early spring andcontinuing through apple harvest in the fall, thousands of thestate's residents and tourists alike salute the bounty of Michi-gan's diverse agriculture as communities across the statesponsor commodity festivals.

Extension Says 'Thanks'for FB's Support,

Thank you for a tremendousarticle in the recent edition ofRural Living regarding theEMAT program. Having SandraHill and two of our staff mem-bers adorning,the cover in fullcolor is a little hard to beat.

As you know, we do greatlyappreciate the total supportthat Farm .Bureauhas given tothe Cooperative Extension Ser-vice in this as well as manyother efforts. However, this oneis most timely and one that isreally meeting critical needs offarm families across the state.

Your support through this ar-ticle, the su'pport of your presi-dent, Elton Smith, yqur board ofdirectors, as well as the individ-ual county units, is beyondwhat anyone would have pro-jected. We are indeed gratefuland look forward to not onlythe continuation of this pro-gram but initiation of others asthe need arises.

J. Ray GillespieAssoclate Director/ProgramsMSU Cooperative ExtensionService

FARMETTEBy Andrea HofmeisterTuscola County

"His name Is Phydeaux and Jimmy'smommy said I could have him be-cause he's cross-eyed, he digs holesand he brings dead mice to the backdoor. Boy! This Is our lucky day!"

RURAL LIVING, JUNE 1986

June 7June 12-14June 20-22June 20-22June 26-29June 27-29June 28July 4,July 5July 6-12July 10-13July 11-12July 16-20July 17'

July 16-20July 24-27July 24-27July 31-Aug. 3Aug. 1-3Aug. 8-10Aug. 15-17Aug. 22-24Aug. 30

Aug. 31-Sept. 1Sept. 1-3Sept. 4-7

Sept. 5-7Sept. 6-7

. Sept. 6-7Sept. 11-13Sept. 12-14Sept. 18-20

Sept. 19-21Sept. 19-21Oct. 3-5Oct. 9-13Oct. 18

Strawberry Festival, Battle Creek.National Asparagus Festival, Shelby/HartSugar Festival, SebewaingStrawberry Festival, BellevilleStrawberry Festival, CheboyganNational Pickle Festival, LinwoodInternational Sausage Festival, Battle CreekEau Claire Cherry Festival, Eau ClaireInternational Cherry Pit Spit, Eau ClaireNational Cherry Festival, Traverse CityCorn Festival, AuburnStrawberry Festival, ChassellNational Blueberry Festival, South HavenChicken Broil (featuring Michiganproducts), ManchesterKalamazoo County Flowerfest, KalamazooMunger Potato Festival, MungerFarmers' Festival, PigeonMade in Michigan Expo, 'ChesaningGlad/Peach Festival, ColomaMint Festival, St. JohnsBlueberry Festival, MontroseMelon Festival, HowellSt. Joseph Today Harvest Festival,St. Joseph'Harvest Festival, MantonPeach Festival, RomeoMichigan Wine and Harvest Festival,Kalamazoo/Paw PawPotato Festival, PosenHarvest Festival (Tabor Hill Winery),BuchananSeafood Festival, MarquetteHarvest Festival, ScottvilleMichigan State Potato Festival, EdmoreMarquette County Harvest Festival,MarquetteFour Flags Apple Festival, NilesFestival of the Pines, Lake CityHuron Township Applefest, New BostonApple Festival, BangorBlossomtlme Festival of Wines, LakeMichigan College, Benton Harbor

13

Sesquicentennial Kick-OffPromises Fun and Variety

By Donna Wilber

There's going to be a big'birthday party on the statecapitol mall June 14 - and

, you're invited! While you'rethere, you'll get a preview ofagriculture's role in Michigan'ssesquicentennial.

The June 14 festivities willonly be the kick-off of an18-month celebration of Michi-gan's 150th birthday. There'splenty more to come and Michi-gan agriculture is tapping all ofits resources and creativity tobe on center-stage.

Plans being developed by anag subcommittee of the Michi-gan Sesquicentennial Commis-sion extend beyond the June 14kick-off and beyond 1987, thesesquicentennial year, withlong-term projects designed tostrengthen tomorrow's agricul-ture and benefit the state'sfuture citizens.

Composed of representativesof various segments of the agindustry, the subcommittee op-erates under the leadership ofMontcalm County Farm BureauPresident L. Charles Mulholland.

"Agriculture has played a ma-jor role in the development ofthis state and it's only rightthat we pause to' reflect onthose contributions and paytribute to what we have ac-complished. It also provides uswith the opportunity to preparefor the future of our Industry,"he said.

14

A "M!ch!gan Agriculture., .. IsForever!" theme was developedby the Michigan Department ofAgriculture to communicate themessage that the industry wasa key to the state's economicgrowth in the past, is a majorfactor in the state's economicwell-being today, and will con-tinue to be in the future.

The theme will appear on over200 highway billboards through-out the state to promote ag-oriented festivals, and countyand state fairs, as well as fruitsand vegetables available forpicking or purchase at localfarms~

"Taste Michigan" at Kick-OffAgriculture - both past and

present - will be on displayduring the June 14 sesquicen-tennial kick-off activities begin-ning at 1 p.m. in downtownLansing with "150 Years ofMichigan on Parade." A 40-footag float pulled by a six-horsehitch, a steam engine manufac-tured in Port Huron at the turnof the century, several horseand carriage units, and an old-fashioned country band withsquare dancers, will be part ofthe big parade.

Dignitaries will be delivered tothe capitol steps by horse-drawn carriages for the openingceremonies at,.3 p.m. The Michi-gan Horse Council and GreatLakes Draft Horse Association

will provide "people movers" inthe form of horse-drawn wagonsthroughout the day's activities.

Commodity groups and foodprocessors will feature theirproducts at a "Taste Michigan"concession area from noon un-til 4 p.m.

Ralph Kirch, administrator ofMDA's Exhibition ~ Racing Divi-sion who is "on loan" to theSesquicentennial Commissionas coordinator of ag activities,expects the opportunity to"Taste Michigan" will draw agood share of the anticipatedhuge crowd attending the kick-off.

"The aroma of the pork, beef,turkey and other Michigan foodproducts and the sounds of thecalliope and country' band arecertain to attract people to theag area," Kirch said. '

Tickets, at 25ft each, will besold to festival-goers by theFuture Farmers of America. Thetickets may then be exchangedfor food items at the variousbooths to help offset the costs.

While festival-goers munch ontheir Michigan food products,they can view demonstrationsof sheepshearlng, wool weavingand spinning, wheat flailing, aburr mill and a fanning ,mill,'watch log-sawing with an oldsteam engine, and compare oldMichigan-made farm imple-ments with today's modern

RURAL LIVING, JUNE 1986

equipment. From there, theycan walk to the lobby of theNorth Ottawa Tower Building forthe MOA's open house and pickup a bag of popcorn from anold-fashioned popping'machine.

Still in the planning stages forthe ,kick-off is baking theworld's largest blueberry muf-fin. "We're going to try to break'into the Guiness Book of WorldRecords," Kirch said. _"Wedon't

~know how we're going to doityet, but if it can be done, we'lldo it."

A highly-visible project ofMichigan's bedding plant in-dustry, which ranks first in thenation, will be a sesquicenten-nial logo flower bed around thestatue of Gov. Blair in front ofthe state capitoL A more per-manent structure will be in-stalled later with an under-ground sprinkling system andfloodlight~. Following the ses-

quicentennial, the flower bed.will be available to carry themeor logo messages from organi-zations in the state.

Post Kick-Off ActivitiesAfter the kick-off .parade, the

ag float will be loaded on asemi-trailer, with "MIchIganAgriculture ... Is Foreverl" bill-Iloards on both sides, to visitother parades throughout theseason. Those parades won't belimited to commodity festivals."We expect the Michigan Stateand University of Michigan foot-ball teams will' be going to bowlgames and we'd like to see thefloat in those parades too,"Kirch said.

"We're looking for sponsor-ship to pay the expense of thehorse hitch. Those horses reallyadd a lot of class. They com-pete very well with the Bud-weiser hitch."

Kirch gets enthusiastic whenhe talks about an added dimen-sion to the ag float - charac-ters depicting Michigan com-mo.dities "to shake hands withthe kids along the parade routeor wherever we do the 'TasteMichigari' promotion. We couldhave a whole stable of thosecharacters which would make agreat half-time show at footballgames. We could even have con-tests through the Ag in theClassroom project to name thecharacters. "

Other promotional projectsunderway includ~ an audio-visual presentation on "150 .Years of Michigan Agriculture,"a brochure on "Michigan Agri-culture Today and Tomorrow,"and an update of the "MichiganCountry Carousel" guide to

(continued on page 17)

A 'Stitch in Time' Preserves' Memories

Tbe !'Ilcblgan 4.6 Frlendsblp.Quilt, created In 1983 at quiltingbees tbrougbout tbe state, Iscomposed of patcbes from 60counties In Mlcblgan, eacb patcbrepresenting sometblng uniqueto tbe county. Itls now on dls.play at MSU's museum. During .tbe sesqulcentennla~, many coun.ty 4.6 groups will make tbelrown friendsblp quilts.

RURAL LIVING, JUNE 1986

..A separate Image Is depicted oneacb leaf of tbe large 4.6 cloveron tbe Cbeboygan County patcb.One leaf represents agriculture,one of tbe county's Important In.dustrles. Anotber sbows tbe55-foot blgb Indian River Sbrine,tbe world's largest crucifix. TbeMackinac Bridge spans acrossanotber leaf, and tbe last leafsbows a camping scene, one oftbe many tourist attractions Intbe county.

See. anytblng unusu~1 about tblscow? Tbls creative design by Liv-Ingston County FB member JeanRobb Is part of a quilt depictingFowlerville's blstory. Tbe Fowler'ville Pbllomatbean Women's ClubIs helping tbe community cele'brate Its 150tb anniversary bypreparing tbe quili for raffle.Eacb club member stitcbed orpainted one or more quilt blocks.Jean and ber busband, George,are long-time breeders of regis.tered 1I0isteins under tbe RusticlIerd prefix.

15

Farmer-Member.Totals Affirm. MFB's..

Leadership Role in Agriculture

category having the highestpercent of regular members onAug. 31, 1986. Counties musthave reached at least 100% oftarget to qualify for this award,which will be presented at thestate annual. .

Every county achieving 100%of target in 1986 will receive atarget plaque during their an-nual meeting this fall.

Now in its fourth year, theDirector's Key Club recognizes _individuals for their efforts inhelping to maintain and in-crease regular members ..Eachmembership worker~ secretaryor agent who writes five ormore new regular members isinducted into this exclusiveclub at their county annual andinvited to the next year's mem-bership kick-off dinner at thestate annual.

The newest membership in-centive is the Top Defenderaward, which recognizes coun-ties that do the best job of re-taining members. The fivecoun~ties iri the state tha~ have thehighest member renewal per-centage will receive this awardat the state annual.

.An additional incentive in the1986 campaign has been the

, renewal of the "gentle rivalry"between Michigan Farm Bureauand Ohio Farm Bureau. With a.campaign spirit reminiscent ofthe late 1960s, the rivalry wassoundly renewed at the Michi-gan/Ohio Breakfast during theAFBFannual meeting in Atlan-ta, Ga. MFBPresident EltonSniith and OFBFPresidentJames Patterson issued a proc-lamation and membership chal-lenge. The state having thelargest numerical gain in mem-'bers onAug. 31 will be declaredthe winner of the contest.

is to invite legislators to Com-munify Group meetings to dis-cuss issues," he said.

Rep. Gary R~ndall (R-Elwell),assistant minority leader of theHouse, also expressed respectfor FB's policies. As a long timemember of the Gratiot CountyFB, he is well aware of the grass-roots nature of the .state'slargest farm organization.

"Farm B~reau has always pro-vided a pretty accurate readingof where a majority of the farm-ers in the state are at any par-ticular time and rve alwaysvalued their counsel a greatdeal," Randall said.

With the commitment to buildupo~ the success of last year'scampaign and carrying thetorch of a renewed challengewith.Ohio Farm Bureau, mem-bership workers across thestate combined their talents toachieve Michigan Farm Bureau'smembership goal of 94,893 onApril 3, three weeks earlier thanin 1985:

Membership growth has con-tinued and by mid-May over15,000 new members had been'signed and MFBhad surpassed1986 goal by more than 1,500member families.. ::Our membership totals send Awards Recognizea message about .the positive' . Membership Achievementsimage people have about Farm Both county FBs and hidivid-Bureau," said MFBPresident ual workers will be recognizedElton R. Smith. "Farmers are for their extra efforts on thismaking it very clear that they year's campaign with theare willing to join and support presentation of several awardsF~umBureau, the grassroots or- this fall.ganization that offers members The Fabulous Fifteen Club isan opportunity to .influence and reserved-for-the first threeshape the future'of their farm- counties to reach goal in eaching industry." membership category. Members

With the steady increase in of this exclusive club wiil beregular farmer members, MFB recognized at the 1986 MFBan-now represents 80% of the nual meeting. They are: in thestate's farmers. That figure pro- 1-500 member category -jects a positive image in the Mackinac-Luce, Antrim andstate Legislature when the time Menominee; 501-1,000 -Mid-arises to vote on ag issues. land,.Ogemaw and Wexford;

"When we're dealing with agri- 1,001-1,500 - Muskegon andcultural issues here in Lansing, Kalamazoo, with several.coun:-Farm Bureau has the largest im- ties still in contention to fill thepact," said Rep. Lewis Dodak final spot; 1,501-2,100 -(D-Montrose), House majority. Wayne, Livingston and Macomb;.floor leader who is a member of and 2,101 and over - Kent, Baythe Saginaw ,Coun,tyFB. and Monroe.

Dodak said the organization's. The Golden Tractor awardclout in Lansing is based on its provides additional emphasisgrassroots structure. "One of on regular member growth. Thisthe most effective things Farm award recognizes the top twoBureau does on the local level counties in each membership

By Marcia Ditchie

16 RURAL LIVING, JUNE 1986

Stock up for the fall months!

FROZEN FOOD SALE

Mark Your Calender

State

- Plant sesquicentennial treesinvolving local elected officialsin.public ceremonies. Usespeciesimportant to the local area.

- Arrange local ag tours forvisitors which combine history,farming methods' and pick-your-own opportunities.

- Publish a cookbook with rec-ipes using Michigan food prod-ucts.

- Have a Michigan ag trivia.contest.

-Give special recognition forrestoration of old farm build-ings, or provide funding/volun-teer labor to restore an oldbarn.

- Run a series on the historyof your Farm Bureau in yourcounty newsletter.

-Organize an old-fashionedcommunity reunion with a pic-nic and fireworks.

-Seed area roadsides withnative wildflowers.

Farm Bureau Membership Name- (as shown on membt-rship card)

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community. County FB leaderscan do that by volunteering toserve on these committees," hesaid.

Projects which could be un-dertaken by county Farm Bu-reaus, their various committeesand Community Action Groups,include:

- Hold an all-Michigan sesqui-centennial dinner.

-Sponsor farm tours, espe-cially those with historic build-ings or equipment.

- Develop a rural-urban ex-change program where childrencan visit a farm and work therefor a period of time.

-Sponsor a contest for schoolchildren. to develop 'new ways ofusing Michigan food products.

- Sponsor a recipe contest forMichigan products.

-Set up a bus tour of Michi-gan's ag sectors, from farm toprocessing plant to grocerystore or restaurant.

Sesquicentennial(continued from page 15)

pick-your-own farms, roadsidemarkets, wineries, maple syrupoperations, fisheries andnurseries.

Long-Term ProjectsThe ag subcommittee has tar-

geted creation of a Food andAgriculture Center near Michi-gan State University as itsnumber-one ongoing project forthe sesquicentennial. The cen-ter, which has been under dis-cussion by farm leaders for anumber of years, would providea location for livestock, machin-ery, trade and educational ac-tivities, and for demonstrationand promotion of the process-ing, distribution and marketingsystems which make Michiganag products available through-out the nation and world.

Other ongoing projects on thepriority list include emphasison ag education throughout theschool system, a traveling ag ,exhibition explaining Michigan'sheritage and future promise inagriculture, signs and informa-tion on agriculture at entrancesto the state and other touristcenters, promotion of ag tour-ism especially in the Upper Pen-insula, emphasizing its Scandi-navian heritage, and encourage-ment and promotion of munici-pal and farm markets.

Farm Bureau's Role intbe Sesquicentennial

Where does Farm Bureau fitinto the sesquicentennial ac-tivities? Ag Subcommittee

.Chairperson Mulholland' be-lieves that with their uniquegrassroots structure, countyFarm Bureaus can playa lead-ing role in their respective com-munities.

"A logical first step is tomake sure that agriculture isrepresented on the sesquicen-tennial agencies that will beformed in nearly every Michigan

Zip Telephooe No. I

RURAL LIVING, JUNE 1986 17

NOMIC UPDATE

Research and Development Returns Yieldand Market Gains to Soybean Growers

Soybean rese'arch and devel-opment conducted over thepast decade is delivering re-turns in higher yields andgreater market opportunitiesfor Michigan producers. A re-view of yield and acreage statis-tics gives convincing evidenceof the dramatic and steadygrowth of the industry in thestate.

In 1960, Michigan farmersharvested 221,000 acres of soy-beans. By 1977, that figure hadmore than tripled, reaching725,000 acres. Year to year in-creases brought the 1985 soy-bean crop to an unprecedented1,150,000 acres.

During the same period, aver-age yields have improved. Hereagain, statistics tell the story.During 1960-64, Michigan's pro-duction was 1.2 bu.l acre lowerthan the U.S. average of 24bu.l acre. However, during the

.time of rapid soybean acreageexpansion,' Michigan producersdid well in their managementfor higher yields. The state'saverage yields from 1980-84reached .30.7 bu.l acre; 2bu.l acre higher than the U.S.average yields in the sameperiod.

It is little wonder that soy-bean farmers have been suppor-tive of a state check-off pro-gram to fund the research anddevelopment programs thathave encouraged these yield in-creases. Farmers in Michiganfirst voted for the current112ft/bu.soybean check-off in1976. By law, check-off fundsmust be invested in soybeanresearch, market developmentor education. Distribution of thefunds is controlled by the Michi-gan Soybean Promotion Com-mittee, which is composed ofseven soybean farmers ap-pointed by the governor .

.18

Soybean Researcb -"ecessity or Luxury?

About 40% of the Michigancheck-off funds have been allo-cated to soybean research atMichigan State University.These projects can be catego-rized into three categories.

-Variety breeding and testingresearch specifically for Michi-gan ..

- Production research projectson row spacing, weed control,tillage, nodulation, etc ..

- Utilization research on proJ-ects designed to use soybean.products.

The Varietal Breeding Pro-gram, developed specifically f?rMichigan, was not funded until1982. Because of the state'sunique soil and environment,adapting varieties from otherstates was a risky adventure atbest. The program is being car-ried out under the researchleadership of Dr. Tom IsleibAlthough Isleib has done onlythree growing seasons of Michi-gan variety breeding, the re-search already shows promise.Soybean producers, through thePromotion Committee, fundedthis program again in 198.6.

On-going research is beingcarried out to improve resis-tance to white mold, to increaseyields under conservation till-age, to study water manage-ment and use by soybeans, toincrease nodulation, to improvechemical and cultural weed con-trol and to further investigateand control root rot.

A third category of research,and possibly the most impor-tant, is soybean utilization. ThePromotion Committee funds re-search projects which developuses for soybeans and soybeanby-products. Current projectsinclude the potential use of soy-bean oil as a carrier for pesti-

cide and fungicide applicationfor specific commodities. Thecommittee hopes to expandboth the number of projectsfunded and the amount ofmoney allocated to this type ofresearch.

Funds Used to Expand Market

Michigan soybean check-offdollars do not work alone. Sup-port of international soybeanpromotion projects conductedby the American Soybean ~sso-ciation opens market and In-come opportunities for soybeanproducers. Sixty percent of theMichigan check-off funds arecombined with funds from 25other states to finance theassociation's nearly 400 marketpromotion activities in 84 coun-tries ...

The combined funds provi~eseed money to support. manyprojects. Every $1 of check-offgenerates $2.50 of promotionalsupport from the USDA's For-.eign Agricultural Service, agn-business and foreign govern-ments around the world. An in-dependent study conducted forthe association by Chase Econo-metrics showed that. in a10-year period, every dollar in-vested in export promotion in-creased gross soybean cashreceipts by $57.50.

Evidence of success is South-.east Asia's increase in U.S. soy-bean use from 9 million bu. in

. 1979 to 12 million bu. in 1985.Korea has increased use from 2million bu. in 1971 to 26 mil-lion bu. in 1985. The mostdramatic is Mexico's 1 millionbu. use in 1970 to over 7.3million bu. use in 1985.

Ongoing projects includeshrimp aquaculture work inSoutheast Asia which could de-mand 10 million bu. Domesticuse of soybean oil as an eleva- .tor grain dust suppressant

Advertisement paid for by the Michigan Soybean Association

INCREASE WILL EXPAND MARKETS:

YOUR CHECK-OFF DOLLAR$ HAVE:

Look What theSoybean Check-OffHas Done for You!

Vote "YES" for Soybeans!JUNE 30 - JUL Y 12

Ixl Check-off continued

Ixl Check-off 1(:YESVote 44YES" on BOTH Issues

for Better Markets

-Helped expand world markets for U.S. soybeans. Since 1976,soybean purchases are !-lP 31 % in Japan, 52% in Taiwan, 60%in Mexico and 35% in Korea.

-Generated an additional $2.50 of outside money for every soy-bean grower dollar invested in market development. Each 32cents of farmer funding generates 68 cents of funding from theUSDA's Foreign Agricultural Service, which assists in thepromotional effort, and from business or government cooperatorsin the foreign countries.

-Supported research to develop soybean varieties adaptable toMichigan's soils and environment.

-Supported utilization research on the use of 'soybean oil as anagricultural chemical carrier.

-Current funding levels aren't getting the job done. Last year mar-ket promotion projects totalling.$3.5 million were turned downbecause of insufficient funding. These were projects with anestimated return on gross soybean income of over $76 million.

-Times of low price and large supply are when market promo-tion does the most good. Aggressive marketing can increasedemand for soybeans and soybean products.

- A recent study by Chase Econometrics reported that from 1970to 1980, check-off funded export expansion programs increasedgross soybean farm income $57.50 per dollar invested.

- Michigan Soybean Association-Michigan Farm Bureau-Ingham and Monroe County Farm Bureaus- National Farmers Organization

CHECK-OFF INCREASE SUPPORTED BY:

could create a 20 million bu.need. Another 20 million bu.would be needed if a 5% soy-bean Mexican tortilla could bepromoted.

State Soybean Growersto Vote in Referendum

The Promotion Committeehas petitioned the MichiganDepartment of Agriculture tohold a referendum in 1986 toamend the present program toassess Ii/bu., a Ihi/bu. in-crease. A public hearing washeld on May 2 and the tentativevoting dates are June .30-July12. The MDA will mail ballots tothe state's soybean producersand make extras available atcounty Extension. offices.

The ballot will include twoquestions. One will ask growersif they want the Soybean Promo-tion and Development Programto continue. The second will of-fer the option of continuing theprogram but increasing thecheck-off to 1i /bu. For the pro-gram to continue and to in-crease the check-off to 1i perbushel, there must be a simplemajority of those voting and ofthe acreage they represent.

If passed, this 1i would putMichigan in line with othercheck-off states. Presently, soy-bean producers in 26 states payassessments ranging from 112ito 2i. Three states are at Ihiand three are at 2i while the re-mainder are at 1i.

The Michigan Soybean Associ-ation, a voluntary organizationof soybean growers, supportsthe check-off increase andpoints out that at the 1i /bu.assessment, a farmer growing50 bu./ acre is only spending50i / acre on promotion.

FB Supports ProposalsThe Michigan Farm Bureau

Executive Committee supportedboth the program continuationand increase in assessment.The proposal is consistent withFarm Bureau policy as it pro-vides for a producer referendumand a refund of asses~ment.

RURAL LIVING, JUNE 1986 19

Marketing Orders Provide'Self Uelp' Tool for Producers

The Discussion Topic isused by Comm'unlty Ac-tion Groups for monthlypolley discussions.

In March the secretary ofagriculture decided to discon~tinue the red tart cherry mar-keting order (effective in April1987) that has been in place forthe past 15 years. The decisioncame after a referendum inwhich growers voted by a slimmajority of numbers to rejectthe order, but voted by a ma-jority of volume produced tocontinue the order.

The secretary's action broughthowls of protest from the redtart cherry industry, and under-scored the controversy over thepurpose of federal marketin'g ,orders and the role they play inthe ag economy.

What is a FederalMarketing Order?

A marketing order is a "selfhelp" plan that growers andhandlers of a particular com-modity in a specified geographicarea design and operate to workout solutions to general indus-try problems regarding supplyand demand. Once voted in bythe industry and approved bythe USDAsecretary, marketing

,orders are issued as federalregulations and have the forceand effect of law.

The desired effect of market-ing orders is to provide an"orderly market" that reduces'fluctuations in farm and retailprices and assures consumers asteady supply of quality prod-ucts. The operations of market-ing orders are financed by theaffected growers and processors- not by federal tax money.

More than half of the U.S.-produced milk, fruits and spe-cialty crops, and about 15% ofthe vegetables, are covered by47 federal marketing orders for33 commodities.

Not only does federal lawauthorize marketing orders, but

20

state governments authorize avariety of similar marketing ar-rangements for other fruit,vegetable and specialty crops.Michigan's Agricultural Com-modities Marketing Act (P.A.232) is an example of enablinglegislation for state marketingprograms. The combination offederal and state marketing ar-rangements can affect virtuallyall of the fruit, vegetable andspecialty crops sold in the U.S.

now Marketing Orders EvolvedDuring the latter part of the

19th century and continuingthrough 1919, U.S.agricultureenjoyed a relatively uninter-rupted period of rising' pricesmade possible by'increasingconsumer incomes, growingpopulation and an improvedtransportation and distrib~tionsystem. But even during theserelatively prosperous economictimes, the fruit and vegetableindustries experienced a varietyof problems marketing theirproducts. These included:

-The perishability of ag prod-ucts and intense competitionled to shortages and high pricesfollowed by periods of glutswith low prices and waste.

-The distribution system wasunable to adapt itself efficientlyto the boom and bust cycle.

- Product perishability gavehandlers, wholesalers and re-tailers opportunities to engagein unfair and discriminatorytrade practices.

-Buyers were not confident'asto the value or quality of theperishable products offeredfrom distant sources.

A sudden decline in farmprices between 1920 and 1922compounded the boom andbust problems of the fruit andvegetable industries. Further

economic stress emerged forgrowers as the relatively largeplantings of trees and vines in-duced by the high prices duringthe preceding decade came intoproductio~. By the Great De-pression,increased outputlevels and declining consumerincomes had caused an eco-nomic crisis in agriculture.

Congressional response to,these problems eventually re-sulted in enactment of the Agri-cultural Marketing AgreementAct of 1937 (AMAA).The actauthorized the USDAsecretaryto establish federal marketingorders as a means for improv-ing the orderly marketing ofdomestically produced com-moditieS. This legislation servesas the enabling authority formarketing orders today.

The principle objectives of the1937 act were to enable farmersto obtain parity prices for theircommodities; protect consum-ers by prohibiting any market-ing actions that would mainta'inprices to farmers above the par-ity level; establish and maintainorderly marketing conditions inthe interests of both growersand consumers; and establishand maintain orderly marketingconditions to provide for amore orderly flow of a commod-ity, thus creating greaterstability in supplies and prices.

The parity objectives of theact have been diluted throughlegislative modifications, andorderly marketing has becomethe act's primary objective.

Amendments to AMAA haveincluded orderly marketinggoals beyond those of the earlystabilization programs. Pro-grams that use research todevelop products more accept-able to the consumer, or thatstimulate demand through pro-motion and advertising, have

RURAL LIVING, JUNE 1986

FutJ~re of Marketing OrdersFB policy strongly supports

federal marketing orders thatare design~d t6 provide for or-

been added to AMAA as tools to The most rec~nt extensivebe useq in improving order in federal study of marketingthe marketplace. orders was done at the request

of the President's Task Force onMarketing Order Controversy Regulatory Relief and was com-

Marketing orders have been pleted in November 1981. Thecontroversial. Some growers report focused on marketingand processors believe that orders' effects on economic effi-they should not be forced to ciency, costs and production.participate in an order which Like the two previous presiden-,they did not approve, even if tial commissions, the reportthat order was ratified by a ma- suggested some changes in thejority ,of the growers and proc- operation of marketing orders.essors. However, agriculture as As a result of the commission'sa whole has strongly supported report, the USDAsecretary an-the "majority rule" concept. nounced guidelines in 1982 and

Marketing orders have also 1983 to encourage thosebeen controversial with con- changes.sumers. The underlying issue But despite the new guide-has concerned the degree of lines, marketing orders con-control and influence that tinue to be controversial. Onegrowers obtain under marketing source of controversy stemsorders and the degree to which from the review authority of thethat control and influence could _ Office of Management and Bud-affect the amount of the com- get (OMB).The ~SDAsecretarymodity placed on the market is responsible for making theand the resulting consumer final decisions on actionsprice of the product. , ' relating to marketing orders.

Public concern about market- However, in ma,king any deci-ing orders increased in the early sions that necessitate regula-1970s after the oil embargo and tory action, the secr~tary isre-the Russian.gr'ain deal made' quired to conside~ factors suchthe publiC more aware of the as the costs and benefits of theimpact' of shortages on ~om- regulation~ to society and tom9dity prices. Such external submit the proposed action tofactors, along with escalating OMBfor review..food prices and news accounts This review authority resultedof commodities going unhar- in OMBDirector David Stock-vested, being plowed back into man canceling the red tarttfte ground or fed to animals cherry marketing order in 1982.brought about more interest in The resulting outcry frommarketing orders. growers and organizations such

Supporters believe that only a as Farm Bureau eventuallyfew of the 47 marketing orders resulted in Congress prohibitinguse quantity controls that af- OMBfrom using 1984 funds tofeet consumers and that these review ag marketing orders ororders comprise such a small any activities or regulationsproportion of farm production under AMAA. The prohibitionthat food prices cannot be sig- was continued in fiscal yearsnificantly addressed. Supporters 1985 and 1986.believe marketing orders are ef-fective mechanisms for trans-forming industries that havetraditionally focused on supplymanagement into industriesthat' focus on enhancing con-sumer demand.

RURAL LIVING, JUNE 1986

derly marketing and a~ evenflow of high quality products toconsumers.

'Thepolicy states that ordersshould not be used to' control

. production directly, establishc1psedmarkets, maintain arti- .ficially high prices or collect'funds for the purchase of agri-cultural products for diversionpurposes; should be paid forand controlled by producers;should be used to maintain andexpand markets; should providean opportunity for ne~ produc-ers to enter the industry; andshould include certain provi-'sio'ns for periodic reviewthrough'referenda to determineif the producers covered by anorder favor its continuation.

Education of producers aboutthe objectives and benefits ofmarketing orders may be a keyto their success in the future.Harry Foster of the MichiganAgricultural Cooperative Mar-keting Association said that thered tart cherry marketing orqervote may have been close be-cause of a lack of understand-ing as'to what the order accom-pUshedwhile in effect. .,

"We have a generation' ofyounger farmers in the cherryindustry who have n6t ~ad anopportunity to live without amarketing order, unlike theirpredecessors who lived throughthe market conditions of the1950s and 1960s/' he said."The termination of the orderby the secretary has 're~i1lyput ashock into eve'ryoneand hasgrowers saying that we mustcome to grips with the market-ing. issues in the cherry indus-try." Foster add~d that. industryleaders are considering devel-opment of a new'cherry market-ing order." "

Farmers today recognize theneed to adapt to changing mar-ket conditions. The use of mar-keting orders, and the ability to(continued on next page)

21

BUY YOUR NEXT CAR AT 1%OVER FACTORY INVOICESave hundreds of dollars ona new American car or truck!Sav-On Cars is furnishing Farm Bureau members importantcar-cost information which will save you substantial timeand money when shopping for your next car. *

Save-on Cars with Your Farm Bureau - HERE'S HOW:

• Select as many cars or trucks as you are seriously considering. Fill in the appropriate in-formation on the coupon below.

• Within one business day of receiving your request we will return to you a computerprintout personalized ,for the specific model(s) you have selected. This Car-OptionPrintout will show you the wholesale and retail cost for the base model and for eachand every option available on that particular model.

• You pick the options YOU want, at home, without being pressur'ed.Then, at the bot-tom of your Car-Option Printout you will find a simple form to fill out which will helpyou calculate the final dealer invoice cost, including any mandatory charges.

• Use this price to negotiate your best deal with your local dealer, OR, if we list a par-ticipating factory-authorized dealer in your general area, you can buy the car fromhim at an average of just 1% over dealer invoice.

Legislative Review(continued from page 6)show that either the currentyear or the previous year'staxes have been paid. If a paidreceipt is not included, the re-fund would be a dual checkmade out to both the landownerand the county treasurer.

FB insi.~te9 on the amend-.

ment to permit the use of theprevious year's tax receipt. Thiswould continue to make it pos-sible to receive the refundcheck before paying the currentyear's taxes.

Unfortunately, there are caseswhere the landowner has re-ceived the refunds for someyears, but never paid the taxes.

Inberitance Tax - S.B.462(sponsored by Sen. Nick Smith,et al.) 'would substantially alterMichigan's inheritance tax byadopting the same law now ineffect in Florida and 15 otherstates. It would simplify theinheritance tax to conform withthe federal law. State taxeswould be the amount of thecredit the federal governmentgives for state death taxesagainst the federal estate tax.

The legislation would, in ef-fect, eliminate the inheritancetax for most farmers and other'people due to the new high ex-emptions in the federal law.

It is claimed that many peo-ple are changing t~eir officialresidence to Florida or the otherstates having this system inorder to 'escape Michigan's pres-ent inheritance tax law.

FB is supportive of the bill,but is giving further study tothe proposal as the' presentstate law has special provisionsexempting one-half of any statetax and delaying the other halfif a farm is in P.A. 116.

Lansing legislative topics arereviewed by Robert E. Smith,MFB senior 'legislative counsel.

Please send me a price and options printout for each model listed below.

Model YearExample

1986

2ndcar

3rdcar

Make

BUICK

Model

LESABRELIMITED

StyleIMPORTANT

4-DOORSEDAN

Discuss.on Topic(continued from page 21).modify those orders to meet thechanging needs of agriculture,may play a crucial role in thesuccess of farming in thefuture.

Mail with payment to: Sav-On Cars26711 Northwestern Hwy., Suite 336Southfield, Michigan 48034.-.:u:o::,:n~:e:::::,s::.a::,~:::~~f:::m:~v:' t

Here is my: DCheck DMastercard or Visa Card #

Farm Bureau Membership #

PRICES:$9 for 1 car, $17 for 2 cars, $2.4for 3 cars.

Please Print

Discussion Questions- Do you believe the OMB shouldhave veto power over federalmarketing orders?

-Are there other commoditiesyou feel could be coveredunder marketing orders?

- Do you feel that changesshould be made in the waymarketing orders 9perate?What changes ~hould there be?

Zip

Expiration Date

State

Name

Address

City

22 RURAL LIVING; JUNE 1986

FARM BUREAU MARKET PLACE

FARM EQUIPMENT REAL ESTATE MISCELLANEOUS DOGS

CLASSIFIED AD POLICY

$289COMPLETE(less battery)

COVERS 8-12 ACRES

Registered Australian Shepherdpups - Good cattle dogs and faithfulfamily companions. Zielland Farms,phone 517-874-4616. (5-2t-14p)

Order early!Avoid mid-season delays!

• LOUD SHRIEKS MODEL AVA-2(not bangs) (on post)

• RUGGED OUTDOOR FULLY AUTOMATICRATED (electric eye)

• SET & FORGET IT! POWER• LOWEST COST METHOD (battery or AC)

TEL: (503) 342-1271 ~ TELEX 706017 .

AV-ALARM " CORPORATION675-0 CONGER ST .• EUGENE, OR 97402

SERVING AGRICUL TURE SINCE 1967.

BIRDDAMAGECONTROL

For Sale: Wolverine 1981. 28 ft. trav.el trailer. Rear bedroom. Many extras.Like new. $7,500. Phone 517-642-5464.

(6-17p)

- Farm Bureau members pay 25 cents per word for allclassified advertisements.

-All other advertisers pay 50 cents per word for one insertion'and 45 cents per word for two or more consecutive insertionsof the same ad.

-All advertisements are subject to a IS-word minimumcharge. including member ads.

-Please indicate if you are a Farm Bureau member.-The deadline for ads is the first Monday of the monthpreceding publication.

-All ads must be pre-paid and may be pre-paid up to oneyear in advance.

-It is the responsibility of the advertiser to re-insert the ad on. a month-by-month or year-by-year: basis .-The publisher has the right to reject any advertising copysubmitted ..

-No ads will be taken over the phone.

MAIL YOUR AD WITH PAYMENTTO:Rural Living, P.o. Box 30960, Lansing, Mich. 48909

Write Your Own Will: it's legal. Fourwill forms to fill out. $.3.00 prepaid. Fastservice. Moneyback guaranteed. PICK's,Dept. MIC, Tompkinsville. Ky. 42167.

(6-6t-2.3p-ts)

Bed and Breakfast at Ludington onGood Creek. Our acreage has woods andponds. Contemplate in our hot tub,escape schedules. Father's Day and wed-ding anniversary gift certificates; golf1/2, Lake Mich. 2 miles. Call collect616-84.3-9768. (6-.37p)

MISCELLANEOUS

Old-time fiddle music on cassette.Send long S.A.S.E. for list to FiddleMusic, 448 E. Main St., Kinde, Mich.48445. (5-.3t-15p)

Fish for Pond Stocking - SpringValley Trout Farm. Located near AnnArbor. Phone .31.3-426-4772. Dexter.Mich. (5-2t-16p)

Will Forms - Make your own will easilylReady to fill In. Two forms only $.3.25.Mail to: Forms, Box .3609, New Haven,Conn. 06525. (12-9t-22p-ts)

"ow to start and operate "1" ofyour own profitable business athome. plus ".3" free bonuses. For freedetails write to National Marketing andAssociates, Box .32580, Cleveland, Ohio441.32-0580. (5-2t-.31 p)

Like parties?' Receive free merchan-dise and host a "Country Store FarmParty." We have agriculture orienteditems - T-shirts. sweatshirts. caps withfarm slogans ... plus cookbooks, posters,kitchen accessories with a distinct "farmflavor" to them. Contact me for details:Pam Malburg, 18401 .30 Mile Rd.. Romeo,Mich. 48065. Phone .31.3-752-9714.

(6-51p)

Live fish for stocking ponds. Alsoaerators, equipment and weed controlchemicals. Phone 616-8.34-7720, Grant.Mich. (4-6-8-15p)

WhydIe without a will?'Two legal "WillForms" and easy instructions. Only$4 ... Order Todayl Guaranteedl TY-Company, Box 1022-MF, Prior. Okla.74.362. (6-6t-22p-tss)

Will your bank give you a creditcard?' Ours will. Guaranteed regardlessof credit history. Visa or Master Card.Write to National Credit Bureau, Box.32580, Euclid, Ohio 441.32. (5-2t-29p)

Blueberry farm - .30 acres and 4 bed-room home. 20 acres In top quality pro-ducing cultivated blueberries. Farmingequipment. irrigation system. Fremont.Mich. Call "Mike" 616-924-0229.

(6-2t-2.3p)

. Dr. Willard's Water XXXis back. Yousaw it on CBS's 60 Minutes. Use with liq-uid fertilizer as side dressing, sprayinggrain and forage crops and aerial spray-ing. For transplanting and greenhouses,users say they cut fertilizer applicationin half. 4 oz. makes 100 U.S. gal. -$11.95; 16 oz. makes 400 U.S. gal. -$28.95. Plus $2.00 shipping. Write toNM&:A, Box .32580, Euclid, Ohio 4412.3.

(5-2t-62p)

NURSERY STOCK

Strawberry plants. Midway Sparkle,Allstar. Earliglow; 25 for $5.00, 100 for$14.00. Tribute Everbearing; 25 for$6.50, 100 for $20.00. Add 15% ship-ping. Send to: I &: J. Wolverton Nursery,6197. E. Lake, Millington, Mich. 48746.Phone 517-871-2.325. (5-2t-27p-ts)

Wanted: farm tractors, N.1.corn pickers,J.D. Qulk-Tach corn heads and N.H. chop-pers, hayblnes and other equipment.Phone 517-52.3-280.3 evenings .

(2-12t-20p-ts)

LIVESTOCK

REAL ESTATE

Grain Dryers - Stormor Ezee-Dry. FarmFans Automatic, Used Dryers, PTO andAutomatic. Hamilton Distributing Com-pany,616-751-5161. (6-12t-17p-ts)

Irrigation Pipe - 5,250 ft. of 6 in.;1,050 ft. of 4 In. Ford V-8 Gorman Rupppump, water winch traveler. Phone.31.3-522-0162. (12-8t-20p)

Berry Plants - Raspberries, strawber-ries, blueberries, currants, gooseberries.others. Free catalog. Maklelski BerryNursery, 71.30 Platt Road, Dept. RL. Ypsi-lanti, Mich. 48197. Phone .31.3-4.34-.367.3.

(l1-12t-22p)

Michigan certified strawberry plantsavailable as low as $59 per thousand. 15varieties all grown on fumigated sandyloam soil. Krohne Plant Farms, Rt. 6, Box586, Dowagiac, Mich. 49047. Phone 616-424-.3450. (11-8t-.32p)

Milking Shorthorn: Young bulls, year-lings and calves for sale. Write or visitStanley M. Powell and Family. InglesideFarm, Route 2, .3248 Powell Hwy., Ionia,Mich. 48846. (.3-6t-27p)

Free: Colorful poultry catalog. Offer-ing top quality chicks (Bantams-Exotics-Standards) at rock-bottom prices. Clin.ton Hatchery, Box 548-MRL, Clinton, Mo.647.35. Phone 816-885-8500. (6-24p-tss)

320 acres with 115 acres of treesand five buildIngs. Thumb area. Only$150,000. Ask for Theo. Century 21 atthe Lakes, phone .31.3-698-2111.

(6-2t-2.3p)

Condo on NewSmyrna Beach. Floridafor sale or rent. Completely furnished,two bedrooms, two baths, ocean viewfrom the fourth floor. Tastefully deco-rated. Phone517-.39.3-7857 .. (5-21)

Dog Equipment - Del-Air heat ex-changers, Osborne feeders, K.G. John-son farrowing crates, Chore-Time feed-ing, Mix-Mill systems. Hamilton Distri-buting Company, 616-751-5161.

(6-12t-22p-ts)

Complete Line of New and Used Irri-gation .Equipment - Also equipmentfor manure pumping and spreading bygun, tanker, or injection. PlummerSupply, Inc., 1-800-6.32-77.31.

(l-12t-24p)

IRURAL LIVING. JUNE 1986

UNIVERSALLIFE

Michigan Farm Families... Get theProtection You Want

and the CashYou Need

From Farm Bureau Life Insurance Company of Michigan

Meeting the needs of a family requiresalot of planning and a lot of money That'swhy a Universal Lifepolicy from Farm BureauLife is so valuable for farm familieswho havebig plans for the future.

Besides low-cost life insurance protec-tion, Universal Lifeprovides a substantial cashvalue fund that you can use to buy prope~payoff a mortgage, educate your kids, orfund your retirement.

Much of the premium you pay into yourUniversal Life policy accumulates as cashvalue which you can withdraw when youneed it. And your cash value fund earns ahigh rate of interest, one of the highest paidanywhere in Michigan.

Making your futurea little more predictable

Michigan Farm BureauRural Living MagazineP.O. Box 309607373 W. Saginaw Hwy.Lansing, Michigan 48909

Universal Life is so flexible that it canmeet your life insurance needs for your entirelifetime. You can increase or decrease thedeath benefit when you need to, reduce orincreaseyour premium payments as needed,and use the cash value when you need itmost.

Yourbig dreams may carry big price tags,but you can accumulate the cash you needwith a Universal Life polic~ and all the whileyou'll be protected by life insurance.

Find out how Universal Life can make abig difference in your family's future. Callyour .Farm Bureau Insurance agent today

FARM BUREAU ~INSURANCE

GROUF!• _ IIlRAlJ IotJTUAL • _ IIlRAlJ 1ft • _ IIlRAlJ _ • FB -.ny

Non-Profit OrganizationU.S. POSTAGE

PAIDLansing, Michigan

Permit No. 37