Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, November 12, 1993 TAG: 9311120133
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: A-7 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DOUG LESMERISES STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Concerns had been raised that small farmers may be driven out of business because of the increased milk production that may come with the use of recombinant bovine somatotropin, or BST.
But the farms that are in danger are not necessarily the small ones, but the poorly managed, farmers said Thursday.
"It's the individual, not the size of the farm," said Mark Goode, a Bedford County farmer milking about 100 cows. "BST will cater to the well-managed farm."
"Some of the guys on the lower end of the totem pole who are not doing a good job of managing" will not see the benefits and may be driven out of business sooner, said Jerry Jones, assistant director for extension agriculture and natural resources at Virginia Tech.
"Dairy farming is evolving all the time," said Goode. "Farms are going out of business anyway."
He said he'll use BST if the price, still unknown, is low enough to make it worthwhile. Those who can't handle its implementation will have to deal with the consequences.
"You don't want to drive out your neighbors," he said. "But you have to do what's best for your own particular operation."
Cline Brubaker, a dairy farmer in Bedford County, said that assuming small farmers will be hurt by the increased BST production is assuming a lot.
"That's saying that big farmers' efficiency is higher, which isn't always the case," he said.
Brubaker, who has 85 cows, is not going to jump on BST right away, but will see how other farmers use it.
A 90-day waiting period on BST use began when the hormone was approved last Friday. White House officials will study the possible economic impact of the increased milk production.
BST is a bovine hormone that naturally occurs in lactating cows. It is directly tied to milk production.
Injecting the manufactured BST into a cow extends the time of its peak levels of milk production.
The hormone should increase production by about 10 to 15 percent, according to John Miller of the Virginia State Dairymen's Association.
Despite the safety measures and more than a decade of study, Miller said, dairymen still will be concerned with what "the consumers feel when they hear it's a growth hormone. They don't want to do anything to affect the consumption of dairy products," he said.
Miller said the state's dairy farmers are split on the issue, with many taking a "wait-and-see attitude." But he doesn't see small farmers being adversely affected.
"He or she can get some benefit of efficiency," he said.
Rather than a revolutionary save-all that will drastically cut the need for small farms, Miller agreed that BST just seems to be the latest in technology. Dairy farmers are used to having their numbers reduced thanks to better methods.
In 1950, there were 440,000 cows on 3,000 dairy farms in Virginia, said Miller. They produced 1.6 billion pounds of milk.
Now, 130,000 cows on 1,200 dairy farms produce 2 billion pounds of milk.
"We're making progress naturally and BST gives us the step up for farmers who use it properly," Miller said.
The three real keys to success are "good breeding, good feeding and top management," he said.
by CNB