Evening star., 1947-07-06

r
We can make these allocations, a
least during the early months. be.
cause of the definite prospects ol
another record breaking United
States wheat crop-last estimated al
about 400, ,000, 900 bushels for 1947
We could not, of course, expect te
keep up this level of export ship
ments throughout the entire year il
the total of all available grain Is
substantially lowered by reductions
in other grain crops. The size OF
the final exports which we can
safely spare from our grain supplies
for the year will, therefore, depend
to a considerable extent upon the
production of corn and other grains
in addition to wheat.
Corn Crop Is a Factor.
1t Is hoped that we will be able
to approximate this years ship
ments, If transportation and ship
ping facilities are adequate and II
the necessary financial arrange
ments are completed. We shall
hllOW bliAo WACl
corn crop is harvested.
The quantities of other foodstuffs
which can be exported will depend
not only upon supplies, but also upon
their availability at relative costs
which will make them practical i'm
port commodities for those coun-
tries and agencies responsible for
stretching available funds to meet
the most urgent food needs of hun
cry people. They cannot be ex-
pected to take luxury" or high
cost" food items.
While We continue the necessary
export of interim supplies of food
stuffs, It Is very important that we
make every effort to help the devas-
tated countries "help themselves. u
The sooner these countries get back
to their normal food production, the
sooner will we be relieved of special
supply responsibility-and the sooner
will they become self-supporting
economic units able to take theil
place in q more stabilized world,
A good illustration of this sort oil
indirect food" help Is the program
directed by the Army in shipping
fertilizer to the occupied zones OF
Europe. During the calendar year
1947, the Army plans to supply fer
tilizer material containing about
10000 short tons Q43,o00 long tons)
of badly needed nitrogen. This
nitrogen is being produced in plants
which are under Army jurisdiction
and does not come out of our COM
mercially produced supplies. 1t will
be a vital contribution to the job
of getting these areas back into
normal domestic food production.
Other Areas Get Fertilizer.
In addition to the fertilizer ship
ments to occupation zones, substan-
tial quantities of nitrogenous fer
ttlizer have also been exported to
other devastated areas in accord
ance with IEFC recommendations as
to the regions of greatest need. AL
though the United States is historic
ally net importer of nitrogen fer
tilizer, because OF greatly increased
domestic production it has been pos
sible to make these special exports
and still have much more nitrogen
than before the war for use on our
own farms, to help meet the needs
of high-level United States crop
production.
More work of the kind which will
help restore production in the needy
areas should be done in order to re-
duce the unusual drain on American
food and financial resources.
The need for devastated countries
to get back into normal production
as soon as possible, and to make the
most effective use Of their own sup
plies, is undeEscored by the prob
ability that even the utmost efforts
Of the United States and other ex-
porting countries will again fall
short of making up all the acute
food deficits in many countries dur
ing the year ahead. To this end the
Food and Agriculture Organization,
acting on behalf of the Interna-
tional Emergency Food Council, and
after a formal recommendation by
the United States Department of
Agriculture, has called a special
cereals conference in Paris, begin
ming july 9. The effort will be to
acQuaint all countries with facts OF
the world food situation ahead, and
to encourage the most adequate pos
sible steps on the part Of import
ing countries to increase the effec-
tiveness of their own production,
distribution and utilization of food
supplies.
A summary Of the more important
commodity export programs and a
table giving preliminary estimates
of all food shipments for the year
are attached at the end on this re-
port.
CABINET COMMITTEE ON
WORLD FOOD PROGRAMS.
Clinton p. Anderson,
Secretary of Agriculture (chairman)
G. C. Marshall,
Secretary of State.
W. A. Hartman,
Secretary of Commerce.
REVIEW OF
MAJOR COMMODITY
EXPORT PROGRAMS
Grains: Before the beginning OF