Evening star., 1946-02-22
Sir John Orr Tells
Fellowship Group
|Of FAC Problem
Bv Ruth Dean

Upon each person devolves the
responsibility of creating a we'll
informed public opinion If the sue
cess of the Food and Agricultural
Organization set up by the United
Nations Organization for the bet
termert of world health and peace
is to be assured, Sir John Orr, di-
rector general Of the FAC, declared
yesterday.
Speaking before a capacity audi
ence attending the YWCA World
Fellowship luncheon, Sir John de-
clared that ''in my generation there
have been two world wars, with tens
Of millions killed and millions more
left destitute-ample evidence that
something has gone wrong with the
world" The speaker, Scot and
one of Britain's foremost scientists,
warned Of the danger of losing en-
thusiasm for world peace and re-
verting to the old pattern Of things.
He described his new job as bart
Of the attempt to create a new
pattern, job of such magnitude
that it has never before been at
tempted. Sir John paid tribute to
the late President Roosevelt's vision
in seeing the need for such an or
ganization in fulfilling the first of
the four freedoms-freeoom from
want.
The FAC would eliminate" world
economic problems If it set out to
accomplish it's objectives of raising
the levels of nutrition and standards
of living of all nations and encour-
aging greater efficiency in 1ood md
agriculture production and djstri-
button, the speaker added.
Citing his own Is years expert
ence in working with scientific
methods to improve the health of
Britain, Sir John pointed out how
the consumption of protective foods
between the wars showed an in
creased so per cent in the elimina-
ton of dietary deficiency diseases
and an accompanying improvement
in national health.
If these methods of providing good
food and good housing were applied
on an international scale, Sir John
the average life expec-
fancy in poor countries like India
would be doubled and in countries
like Britain and the United States
would be increased five TO ten years.
The plan would call for incl eased
agricultural production but as Sir
John pointed out. If Britain could
increase its production 10 per cent
and the United States. rs per cent,
during the war years with less labor
than in peacetime years, the plan
would not be impossible to carry out,
as many critics claim.
To these critics of the FAC, who
call 1t "starry-eyed idealism," and
claim that under the present
economy such plan could not have
sufficient financial backing, Sir
John suggested that If necessary,
change the financial system, rather
than continue in the same pattern
that led to this war, and that could
lead to another war. IF govern
ments put first things first, social
and economic evils would cancel
themselves" he commented.
Mrs. Karl Fenning, vice president
of the Washington YWCA Board of
Directors, presided and introduced
Sir John and his attractive wife,
Lady Orr. Other prominent guests
seated at the head table included: !:
DR.. Margaret Reid, chief of the Di-
vision of Family Economics of the
Bureau of Human Nutrition and
Home Economics; DR.. Callie M,
Coons, assistant chief of the Bureau
of Human Nutrition and Home Eco
nomics; Miss Miriam Birdseye, field
service department of nutrition and
food of the Rural Extension Service;
DR.. Hazel Steibeling. chief of the
Bureau of Human Nutrition and
Home Economics; Miss Har.ene
James, executive director of the
American Planning and Civic As
ISOLATION; Miss Caroline Sherman,
agricultural economist and editorial
writer for Agricultural Department;
Miss Mabel r. Cook, executive di-
rector of Washington YWCA, and
Mrs. Lynn r. Edminster, member of
the Board of Directors of the
YWCA, and chairman of the Food
Service Committee.