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Show Wednesday, November S. 1980. THE HERALD. Provo. Uuh-- Pg News of agriculture from the local and national scene Agriculture I I II I HF' i t N American farmers, who through the years have learned how to provide more and more" food from fewer and fewer acres, are going back to school to learn more about their "futures." This time, however, the courses are aimed at more efficient marketing rather than growing. Extension sen-icmarketing specialists and county agents held hundreds of meetings and seminars in over 30 states last year. They explained forward pricing and hedging on grain, soybeans and livestock. Course attendance has increased in relation to a growing interest in futures markets among farmers. For example. Arthur Sogn. Extension marketing specialist at South Dakota State University, estimates that hedging has tripled among growers in South Dakota in the last five years. Many more follow futures market as a guide to contract pricing but are not hedging. The South Dakota experience is not unusual, either, according to a recent report by Sper-r-y New HoUand, a farm machinery manufacturer. In recent years less than six percent of U.S. fanners used futures markets to hedge their crops. But. increasing numbers of U.S. and Canadian I ft "f UPI TekphoU Oldest water-operate- Ancient Grist Mill Competes - The air in SHF.DD, Ore. (UPI) Merlene Babits' grist mill is alive with dust and grain, the whir of old machines that turn by the power oi water sliding down a mill stream. d She is an anomaly. A businesswoman who must reckon with commodities futures in order to straddle the present and the past. In the tiny Valley town of Shedd, Ore., David and Merlene Babits operate Thompson's Mill, the oldest d grist mill west of the task that Rockies. It's a calls for ingenuity, skill and a love of history that means broken fingernails and long hours. "This miU has been here since 1858," she said, pushing a hand through her dark brown hair. "It was called Boston Roller Mill then. A wool carding mill, also run by water, was just over there," she added, pointing across the mill race. In 1974 Mrs. Babits gave up her career as a Portland radiation therapist and tough-minde- water-powere- bought the mill from Myrle Thompson, whose family ran the operation continuously since 1890. Now, she and her husband grind grain into feed for cattle and other livestock in the same methodical, ingenious way Phllamon Crawford and Richard Finley did when they built it in the middle of the 19th Century. There is no water wheel on the side of the mill, which throws off most visitors' preconceived notions. Water runs from the nearby Calapooia River down a hand-cmill stream past the mill, where it is captured in a large concrete flume. The flume holds turbines that were floated around the Horn by boat. As the water churns through the turbines, a connecting shaft moves a leather pulley and grinding wheels that turn grain into feed. The Babits' supply 30 retail customers with feed, delivering up and down the Wil- -. lamette Valley and to towns along the Coast Range. During winters in a state known for its hard rains, water often rises 13 feet from the mill race bed, running through the second floor of the mill, forcing shutdowns. n The beauty of its beams and rough-woo- d complexion notwithstanding, the mill forces surprises on those who work it. When something breaks down, "you can't just go out somewhere for a part," said Mrs. Babits, "you've got to make a new one." hand-hew- "Very few farmers ever truck a crop to the terminal market at a futures exchange to make delivery on their futures sale." Corley explains. "Farmers sell and deliver at their local cash market. The same day. they send a check to their broker at the futures market to cover their contract commitment." Other farmers hedge on the futures market or contract a price with their local grain elevator buyer before planting. Their idea is to obtain a price that will lock in a profit. Forward pricing contracting and hedging often helps farmers decide what crops to plant. November soybean quotations and December corn futures quotations are an early tipoff to upcoming prices. j i i IVmcksUh Donut House Babits, a young man of few words, is modest about bis role in keeping the mill aiive. He says simply, "You have to kind of take things apart and remember how, so you can put it back together." ut farmers are examining alternatives to selling crops at local cash markets. Many have turned to storage because it gives them a chance to hold some crops for later sales. The most often asked questions at these meetings concern the spread between local cash prices and the daily quotations on a distant futures exchange where they may want to hedge a price, says USDA marketing specialist. Randey Corley. vvyy on any dozen donuts, at any time, on any day, at any WinchelFs. i r grist mill in the west. d m Farmers Study Market e m 41 Visit our convenient locations in Being careful is not always enough, however. In the summer of 1979 "a retaining wall collapsed and we lost part of the mill to the river," said Mrs. Babits. In fact, the mill fell completely open on one side. "A lot of it was just old age," said Mrs. Babits. "It happened June 22. But, by the end of August we were operating." . . . Salt Lake City, Ut Murray, UL Provo, UL Sandy, UL Ogden, UL Logan, UL Orem, UL Bountiful, UL 100-fo- ot "IV&cn ivd ciizd too fair.? vd v:zrt to FCEen-to-Fcit- item, for too teen," cn w SPECIAL ADVANCE ORDER CarZosd Freezer Sale Knocks Inflation Down Place your order NOW for Freezers selling below or comparable with Featuring 20.3 Cu. Ft. 1977 prices. 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