Browning chief., 1944-04-07
American Seed Raisers Grow Record Crops
To Meet Unprecedented Wartime Demands
u. S. Producers Must
Make Up for European
Imports Now Cut Off

In a remote outpost of New
Caledonia sergeant bellows
from the door of a mess hut,
"Hey, Murphy, how about those
vegetables?"
Coming right up, Sarge!"
And Private Murphy moves at a
fast clip from the camp garden,
laden with fresh vitanins and
minerals in the form of sweet
corn, tomatoes and string beans
for the evening meal.
This scene is not as fantastic as
1t sounds, even in the middle of a
war, according to the War Food ad-
ministration. It's a fact that Uncle
Sam is sending many hundreds of
tons of vegetable seeds to all parts
of the world with the armed forces.
Wherever permanent camp is set
up, and other factors are favorable,
fighters who otherwise would get
none of the bulky, perishable vege-
tables are themselves raising the
familiar things they know and like
with seed from home.
Seeds are so small, compared with
the vegetables they produce, that
they are an economical method of
exporting food via either steamer or
airplane. In European countries, for
example, as much as five tons of to-
matoes can be raised from a single
ounce of seed. Rutabagas, another
favored vegetable there, will pro-
duce as much as 500 bushels from
the seed contained in a pint jar.
The total vegetable supply, through
June, 1914, is estimated by the de-
partment of agriculture at 391 mil
lion pounds. OF the allocable por-
ton, (379, 100000 pounds, 70 per
cent or 277 million pounds will 60
to American farmers, to Victory gar
dens-of which % million are
sought this year-and to other civil
ian consumption. This is a some
what larger supply than was avail
able in 1943. Some varieties to
which gardeners are accustomed
may not answer roll call this spring,
and there will be scarcity of cab
bage seed, but no U. S. gardener,
says VIA, need be without plenty
of vegetables.
Another ALLEGATION of $500, 900
pounds or 2.5 per cent goes to Lend
Lease outlets. About five million
pounds will be available to Russia,
and some four million pounds to the
United Kingdom. An additional l.3
per cent, or about 4,450,O00 pounds,
will be divided among the other AL
lied countries and liberated areas.
A total of 3,8l8,0O0 pounds, or
per cent, will be apportioned to U. S.
territories, the Red Cross, friendly
nations, etc. U. S. military and war
services will receive substantial
quantities.
All of these exports, and shipments
total only 4.8 per cent of the total
seed ALLEGATION. The remainder of
the allocable supply, "a million
pounds or 22.2 per cent, will go into
what is known as contingency re-
serve" reserve to be used as need
arises.
Seed needs during recent years
have made increasingly large de-
mands on Americas domestic sup
ply. Balancing available seed
against claims to bring about a fair
division among the claimant groups,
and assisting the necessary expan-
sion in vegetable seed production,
has been a part of the War Food
administrators overall food pro-
duction and distribution programs.
Seeds Came From Europe.
Small vegetable seeds were pro-
duced almost entirely in continental
Europe prior to 1889. When the out
break of war cut other supply lines,
it also stopped, for example, the
importation of cabbage and cauli-
flower seeds from Denmark and Hol-