The herald., 1917-02-08
near FOOD CRISIS,
SAYS u. 5. EXPERT
Gain in Food Production Not
Keeping Pace With Growth
Of Population.
REMEDY IN new METHODS
Increase in Acre Yield Solution Of
Problem, Declares Chief of Uncle
Sans Farm Management
Bureau.

While the war wastage and the
worldwide failure of crops of the past
year were largely 10 blame for the high
! prices of foods, the United States is
nearing II crisis in food production out
side of these unusual causes, in the
opinion of one of Uncle Sans leading
agricultural experts.
This is the conclusion of y. J. Spill
man, chief Of the bureau of farm man.
| agement of the department of agricul-
ture. He said the remedy was better
| methods.
ut is far cry from the BOO pounds
! of milk of the average American COW
| TO the 1900 pounds of Duchess Sky
| lark Ormsby; from the 30 or 60 eggs
| of the average American hen TO the 3l4
of Lady Byzantine" he said, to illus
! trate the possibilities of intensive pro-
| ductiOn, both of meats and vegetables.
During the last decade of the last
century the average price Of farm land
in the United States rose 10S per cent"
said Mr.. Spillman. During the same
| time there was an average increase Of
60 per cent in the price of farm prod
uctS. Thus far in the present decade
both these rates have been exceeded.
Food Production Falling Short.
at appears that we have arrived at
period, or are at least rapidly ap-
preaching it, when increase in the pro-
80
er keeps pace with increase in pOpula-
ton.
1.-THE area of our wheat crop for each
of the last ten years, ending with 1915,
has been, in millions of acres, AZ, 4j,
81, 46, 80, 81 and co respectively. The
marked increase in 1915 may be at
tributed, in the main, TO the stimulat-
Ing effect of the high prices incident To
war. II we compare the average of the
first two years of the period with that
of the last two preceding 1915, there is
an increase of Is per cent for seven
years, rate slightly less than that of
increase in population. 1t must also
be remembered that by far the greater
portion of the land brought Tito Guilt
walton during this period lies in the
western wheat-producing area. We can
not expect the present increase in the
area Of new wheat lands to continue
much longer. While the production of
wheat in 1915 shows that, under the
stimulus Of high prices, American farm
ers can still produce a big surplus of
this commodity, there is also every rea-
son to believe that such stimulus is |
necessary. At present we have reached |
a stage where any great increase in |
wheat acreage-in fact-where an In |
crease proportional to increase in pop
ulatiOn-csn occur only by decreasing
the area Of other crops. This means |
that unless we are to have bread still |
higher in price we must devise means |
OF increasing the wheat yield per acre.
Corn Yield Stationary.
while wheat is our most important |
bread crop, corn is a far more impor- |
tant crop when considered in it's entire |
relation to our national economy. 1t |
occupies nearly twice the acreage of |
any other crop, has a total value more |
than twice as great and is the princ- |
pal basis of meat production in this |
country. The per capita production
OF corn for the last four census years
are 30, 81, 80 and % bushels respective
ly. The total production for each of
the last ten years preceding 1915 has
been, in hundreds CT millions of bush
els, p. %, 2G, y, %, %, %, 81, "a and
-. These figures Indicate practically
no increase for the last decade. during
which population increased probably
about 20 per cent. Even the great crop
OF last year, not included in the figures
above, was smaller than that of three
years earlier.
1T is evident that we have reached
the point where increase in the pro-
duction of corn is not nearly keeping
pace with increase in population. In
fact, the statistics indicate that it re-
quires the stimulus of very high prices
to bring about even a small increase in
the volume of this our most important
crop.
"One reason for this situation is that
the West, where most Of the lands
now being brought into cultivation are
found, is not adapted to the produc-
ton of corn. The acreage of corn is so
large that any considerable increase
in 1t can occur only at the expense OF
other important crops, except as add-
tional land is brought into cultivation
IN the corn-producing states, and this {
must, in the nature Of the case, be
slow process. We must therefore look
very largely to increase in the acre
yield for future increases in this high
ly important crop" {