Austin, Texas
THOSE PRESENT were Johnny Harris, Dr. Jim Anthony, F. R. Brison, H. C Pape, Henry New, John Braden, Jr., B. G. Hancock, RandoIph Terrell, Tabb Harrell, Floyd Gage.
Minutes of the December 1965 meeting were read and approved. The Financial Statement was presented by Secretary-Treasurer J. B. Storey and is attached to these minutes.
INTERIM COMMITTEE The Interim Committee schedule was discussed and set as follows:
Marlin
Johnny Harris, F. R. Brison ....................General Introduction
San Antonio
H. C. Pape .............................................Marketing Problems
Dallas
O. S. Gray ..............................................................Varieties
Wichita Falls
O. P. Leonard ..........................Fertility and Grade Standards
San Angelo---June 16
J. L. Rainey...................................................Harvest
El Paso---June 21
Kenneth Suggs....................................Salinity and Irrigation
Lubbock
John Speck .............................................Zinc Nutrition and Herbicide
Tyler---August 23
W. S. Price ..........................................Insects and Summary
The Interim Committee recommendations will mean more than anything else in securing appropriation during the next session of the legislature for the 1967-68 and 1968-69 biennium. Johnny Harris indicated that he felt the hearing at Marlin was very effective because the Committee asked many good questions. Harris also pointed out that the state was averaging about 50 pounds of pecans per acre which is far under the potential.
John Braden, Jr. indicated that pecan harvest was the only labor that many workers in the Cuero area had during the fall. It is a real help in the war on poverty. It was also pointed out that pecan growing is an intensive type of agriculture which helps to keep people on the farm.
FEDERAL MARKETING ORDER
Jim Anthony reported that the Federated Pecan Growers Association of the United States met 2 weeks ago and determined that the growers would go ahead to see what could be done about getting a Federal Mark-off Program started. Anthony reported that J. Dan Hanna, president of the Federated Pecan Growers Association, said that he had met with the USDA representatives and reworked some of the papers to be submitted to the department. They tried to change the portions of the order to make it fit the objections of various groups. There will be a series of meetings to determine if the order would be feasible over the country. If these are successful, it will come to a vote.
Several of the shellers have objected to taking the mark-off at the sheller level. However, some shellers are in favor of the mark-off at this point. The control involved in the Federal Marketing Order would be that of quality control of export items. The next step seems to be that of securing letters asking for a vote.
OFFICE OF SECRETARY-TREASURER
Secretary Storey reported that Dr. Bloodworth, his department head at the University, had requested that he resign as Secretary of the Association. Help with the typing, preparing the newsletter for mailing, preparing and editing the Proceedings, securing advertisements for the Proceedings, securing commercial exhibits for the Annual Conference, keeping financial records of the affairs of the Association, keeping up the membership roll, answering many hundreds of Association related letters and many other duties have caused the administration of the University to question the wisdom of having a staff member as Secretary. We all know that the University has benefited tremendously by virtue of having the very excellent close working relationship with the industry through the Texas Pecan Growers Association. This has been true during the time that J. F. Rosborough, John E. Hutchison, A. H. Kre7dorn. F. R. Brison, and the present Secretary have been in office. We hope that the industry has benefited by the close working relationship that they have had with the University. It is hoped that some procedure may be developed whereby Texas Pecan News and the Proceedings may be largely edited by a paid editor. It may also be necessary to hire a typist and set up office space off the campus. It is sincerely hoped that even though this is done, that the University might still be able to maintain a close working relationship with the industry by directing the activities of these paid employees. This avenue is being studied but a sweeping change must come to pass at the Annual Conference in Austin
II C. Pape suggested that additional funds could be secured through more sustaining memberships. Randolph Terrell advocated securing more advertisements to cover cost of the Proceedings.
President Harris felt that the Association should certainly pay its way in whatever procedure was arranged.
Tabb Harrell stated that a professional editor could be secured to edit Texas Pecan News. It could be put in the form of a magazine and printed with advertisements to help cover the costs. The editor or someone associated with him could also promote sale of the magazine and secure subscriptions so that the magazine could pay its own way. It could still be the voice of the Texas Pecan Growers Association and carry pecan news. Mr. Harrell stated that he could get an editor to meet with the directors during the July meeting who could make a proposal for such a procedure.
1966 ANNUAL CONFERENCE
Suggested program topics were as follows:
- Interim Committee Report
- Breeding Report from Brownwood.
- Pesticides Topics on the Good and Bad Aspects of Chemicals Used to Control Pecan Insects. This should include safety precautions to be taken.
- Spraying Pecans with Helicopters could be reported by John Scott. PECAN MARKET
- Economics of Pecan Orchard Management by Robert Kensing.
- Plentiful Foods Program by J. R. Vestal or someone on his staff at Dallas.
- Pecan Promotion Program of the Texas Department of Agriculture by Ben Baisdon.
- The Hidden Valley Store by Johnny Harris.
- Mechanical Harvesting by Bill Aldred or Tom Denman,
- Displaying Pecans in Supermarkets. 1
- A slow meaningful report on pecan statistics that would be given in such a fashion that the growers could take notes on the report.
- Pecan Export Status.
- Grower Referendum discussion.
- Pecan Cooperative Marketing by Mr. Brooks of Cotton Producers Association in Atlanta.
- “Markets Alive" was suggested as the general theme of the conference
- Other activities during the Conference would be a police escort to Zilker Park for the demonstrations on Tuesday afternoon.
- The ladies would be treated to a special meeting of some type.
- Tabb Harrell will contact Governor Connally in reference to a speech by the governor at the banquet.
- Commercial exhibits will again be available.
The pecan varieties to be exhibited in the state show should be selected from the more important varieties. Meeting Adjourned
Respectfully submitted,
J. B. Storey
Secretary-Treasurer
