FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 21, 2006

DEADLINE APPROACHES FOR DAIRY SUMMIT SCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE TO FUTURE DAIRY LEADERS

MIDDLETOWN (December 21, 2006) – Young people the ages of 17 and 25 may be eligible to receive financial assistance to attend the 2007 PA Dairy Summit being held February 7 and 8, 2007 at the Lancaster Host Resort and Conference Center, Lancaster, PA. With “Vision - Innovation - Success” as the theme, the Summit will feature an outstanding array of speakers from around the country, and provide practical and timely information for the Commonwealth’s 9,000 dairy producers and dairy industry leaders.

Scholarship funding is being provided by Pennsylvania Dairymen’s Association and the Pennsylvania Dairy Stakeholders. Each individual scholarship is valued at $150 toward the registration cost of $175. To be eligible, applicants must operate a dairy farm, be employed on a dairy farm, or be enrolled in an agricultural degree program in a college or trade school. All applicants must be residents of Pennsylvania and must agree to attend and pay the $25 difference at the time of registration. Additional monies may be available to offset hotel costs for scholarship recipients if the entire scholarship fund is not depleted with registration support.

The application deadline is December 29, 2006 and applications should be mailed to N. Alan Bair, Pennsylvania Dairy Stakeholders, 777 West Harrisburg Pike, Middletown, PA 17057. A Scholarship Committee will make the selection and notify successful applicants by January 5, 2007. Scholarship applications and complete conference information are available at www.padairysummit.org and at www.padairystake.org.

The PA Dairy Summit is hosted jointly by the Pennsylvania Dairy Stakeholders and the Professional Dairy Managers of Pennsylvania (PDMP). Supporting partners are Penn State Dairy Alliance, The Center for Dairy Excellence, and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.

In addition to exceptional speakers, including Cowboy Comedian Baxter Black, breakout sessions will offer practical information on topics ranging from robotic milkers and reducing energy cost to transition cow management and crisis planning. The focus will be on meeting the educational needs of the Commonwealth’s more than 9,000 dairy producers.

This is a tremendous opportunity for “the next generation” of Pennsylvania dairy producers to network with professionals, hear some notable speakers and learn valuable lessons.