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May 29, 1998
Farm Management Tour
to visit Tipton and Howard counties
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- The 1998 Farm Management Tour, slated for July 7 and 8, will
highlight five farms in Howard and Tipton counties.
"The Farm Management Tour makes it possible for the public to visit top farming operations
around the state," said Howard Doster, Purdue University agricultural economist.
"Agricultural producers can attend and learn from other producers; the general public can attend to learn more about agriculture in their area."
Host families conduct tours of their facilities and describe their production and
management practices, according to Doster. The free tour is sponsored by the Purdue
Cooperative Extension Service and Indiana Farm Management Association, which was
formed in 1932 to encourage and develop high levels of management in farming.
This year, the tour will begin at 1 p.m. Tuesday, July 7, at Hite Farms Inc. in Howard
County. In the family since 1863, Hite Farms is operated by Gary and Alice Hite,
son Mark and daughter-in-law Shelly Hite, daughter Paula and son-in-law Rob Ballinger.
They raise 900 acres of corn and soybeans and 2,700 hogs annually. They've begun to
adopt site-specific farming and are trying Roundup-ready soybeans this year. Expansion
is their next critical management challenge.
At 3 p.m., the tour will move to Merrell Brothers Inc. in Howard County. Ted and Terry
Merrell developed Merrell Brothers Inc., which specializes in land application of
animal wastes and municipal biosolids. They employ 31 people. In addition, they're
part owners of M&W Pork, a 1,200-sow pork production enterprise. This stop will provide
the opportunity to observe a unique management approach to farm diversification and
entry into noncommodity markets.
Continuing at 8 a.m. Wednesday, July 8, the next stop on the tour is Kirkpatrick Farms
in Howard County. The father-son team of Robert and Brian Kirkpatrick combines a
traditional management structure with a constant quest for profitable technical improvement. They farm 2,840 acres of corn and soybeans in a 17-tract rotation. Innovations
in the past few years include no-till, soil aeration, yield monitoring and grid soil
sampling.
The tour will move at 10 a.m. to Sharp-View Farms Inc. in Tipton County. Operated
by Scott and Terri Smith, the 1,700-acre farm produces tomatoes, cucumbers and banana
peppers, along with corn and soybeans. A new pickle station provides even more diversity. The Smiths will discuss what processors look for in vegetables and what they do
with those produced in Indiana, management concerns, and how they use their computer
in management. Specialized vegetable planting and harvesting equipment will be on
display.
"Lunch, sponsored by Top Ag Inc. and others, will be served at Sharp-View Farms,"
Doster said. "A limited supply of free lunch tickets will be available at earlier
tour sites."
During lunch, Purdue ag economist Chris Hurt will give the grain and hog price outlook.
Afterward, the tour will conclude with a 1:30 p.m. stop at Salsbery Family Farms in
Tipton County. Organized as a corporation, the farm includes 3,700 acres of cropland
and 1,300 sows in a farrow-to-finish operation. Robert and Phyllis Salsbery began
farming in 1945 with Robert's parents and now farm with their children Tim, Pat, Randy
and Becky. They rent land from 15 landlords and raise their hogs at five different
sites. Their grain-handling and feed-processing operations will be included on the
tour.
For more information about the 1998 Farm Management Tour, contact Doster at (765)
494-4250; e-mail, doster@agecon.purdue.edu
Compiled by Chris Sigurdson, (765) 494-8415; E-mail, sig@ecn.purdue.edu
Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; e-mail, purduenews@purdue.edu
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