Norwich bulletin., 1915-04-06
EFFECT OF WAR ON
WORLDS SUGAR PRODUCTION
Any Scarcity Will Bother This Coun-
try More Than Any Other.

Especial to The Bulletin)
Washington. D. c., April 4.-The Of
the geography of the worlds sugar
production is strikingly shown in a
statement just issued by the National
Geographic Society. This statement
is as follows:
FIFTY three out of every hundred
pounds of sugar produced in the world
is grown in the countries now at war
and their colonies. The total produc-
ton of the world is estimated at ap-
pToximately 1S,000,000 tons. This
production is made up of cane sugar
and beet sugar, the total yield of cane
sugar having been 9,546,OoO tons, and
of best sugar, 8,438,000 tons in 1918.
One of the peculiar facts connected
with the sugar map of the world is
that while Europe produces more than
9S out Of every hundred pounds of
beet sugar grown, it yields only one
pound out of every six hundred of
cane sugar. Of Europe's total pro-
duction of beet sugar. amounting to
7,S08,000 tons, 5,666,000 tons grew in
belligerent territory in 1913. Nearly
all of this product is now entirely is
olated from the outside world, being
grown mainly in Germany, Austria
Hungary and Russia. What this
means to the world is revealed by the
fact that more than two-thirds of the
worlds sugar is not consumed in the
country of it's origin, this condition
arising from the fact that the great
sugar using nations are principally
outside of the belts of sugar produc-
ton
Amy scarcity of sugar, growing out
of the war, will effect the United
States more seriously than any other
country, for the reason that American
people are per capita the heaviest
users OF sugar in the world. With
one-sixteenth of the worlds popula-
hn
than one-fifth of it's sugar. How rap
idly this country is becoming a nation
of sugar-eaterS is revealed by a ref
erence to the tables of sugar con-
sumption of the past half century.
Fifty years ago the people of the Uni
ted States ate 18 pounds of sugar per
capita Five years later, in 1870, they
were using 33 pounds per capita. In
1880, the per capita consumption had
gone up to 40 pounds. Twenty-Five
years ago 1t had risen @toa51 pounds
IN 1900, it had climbed still higher TO
50 pounds. By 1910 the mercury in
the sugar consumption thermometer
reached 80. Today the per capita con-
sumption is upyards of S5 pounds.
'1t appears that the cane sugar in
matter of the total crop yield as re-
suit of the war. On the other hand
the beet sugar business will suffer
very heavily. The present Russian
crop mas Deen almost entirely tied up
inability to get exports out of the
country, while next years crop is
threatened with a shortage resulting
from the destruction of the industry
in Poland, where so much of Russia S
sugar is produced. The reports from
France indicate that the rich sugar
beet lands of the northern sections
were harvested last season under the
direction of the Germans, and that
most of the sugar factories in this
territory have been dismantled to Sc
cure their copper for the manufacture
of war munitions.
Information from Germany indi-
Gates that the empire will plant only
three-fourths of it's normal area in
sugar beets this year This would
result in cutting down Germany's
sugar yield by more than 650,o00 tons.
'Of course the prospective shortage
in beet sugar production will be
somewhat offset by the falling of in
sugar consumption incident to the
financial stringency Of the world,
caused by the war. Great Britain, an
nually buying nearly 100000 tons of
sugar will probably cut down her con-
sumption as much as Germany will
cut down he- production