Evening star., 1948-02-20
Anderson 10 Continue
Grain Saving Program
Despite Crop Outlook
Agriculture Secretary
Says 1t Checks Prices
By Limiting Demands
Rv David Laurence q

The Agriculture Department Isl
planning to continue its campaign
of grain conservation notwithstand-
ing the outlook for better crops.
The key to this policy is the desire
Of the Government to prevent ab-
normal demands from arising to
send prices upward again. The
basic conception Is one Of endeavor-
ing to regulate demand by alloca-
tion Of quotas to different users of
grains. Secretary Anderson ex-
planned 1t to this correspondent as
a policy that would be applied not
only to distillers but to brewers, wet
and dry millers, bakers and others
who could be persuaded through
the present machinery Of the law to
assist in eliminating waste and re-
ducing demand.
"One user affects the other" said
Mr.. Anderson. Unless we can get
the distillers into line on quota,
the brewers will not go along. Un-
less we can get these two users to
cooperate with us, the bakers hesi-
tate. 1t is all interrelated.
THE amount of the grain saved
by each group is in itself not as i'm
portant as the spirit Of co-opera-
ton among all groups. If, for in
stance, we put the quota for dis
tiller use at 100000 bushels a
month and the controls last for five
months from March /, they will
have used $4,000 900 bushels and the
saving would be about 17,500,000
bushels, assuming that the use has
been about 6,500,000 bushels a
month.
Fears Others Will Refuse.
"But unless we can get the dis
tillers on a quota, we can't get the
brewers or the bakers, and so on"
Asked how long the controls
might remain If Congress gave the
authority to continue them at least
till October 81, Mr.. Anderson said he
hoped that controls might be eased
gradually and that such steps might
occur in the summer.
1T will not interfere with opera
tions," he said, "as much as has
been believed, but the conservation
of grain will tend to hold prices
down and assist us at least in keep
ing them from rising.
On the question of constitution
ality in relation to the power OF
Congress to delegate authority to
the Department of Agriculture to
apply whatever formula 1t thinks
best, Mr.. Anderson said the depart
ment was fortified with a number
of court decisions, particularly those
involving marketing agreements.
Here he said the departments right
to fix quotas had been upheld.
Struggle Inside Industry.
The Secretary said that the con-
troversy over the whole matter OF
conservation was largely struggle
between competitive units inside
an industry who felt that the use
of one formula or another might
affect them adversely or benefit a
competitor.
"We're in a tough spot" he said,
because whatever we do may help
one as against another. But our
object Is to select the formula that
seems to us the most effective. I
feel sure that in the case of the
distilleries they will be making dur
ing 1s48 substantial part OF the
product they planned to make"
Mr.. Anderson is confident that
the brewers will cooperate on an
equitable plan. He said, with re-
spect to the bakers. that the sole
tho icC11a 0f
bread on consignment" a custom
wherein the wholesalers deliver
more bread than may be sold and
agree to take back the unsold
loaves. He felt that this was a
waste which the industry itself
would in the end find advantageous
to eliminate and that controls would
be helpful there.
1--WE are most emphatically not
asking for controls just to enjoy
controls" he said. There are too
many headaches in it. If Congress
gives us the power we need, we will
relinquish it as rapidly as the situ-
alton eases. There is no purpose
to fasten permanent controls on any
industry"
Legislation to grant the Secretary
of Agriculture power to allocate
quotas among users of alcohol from
March / to October 81 is now
pending. Approval by the Senate
seems assured and, though the
measure is TIED up in House COM
mittee, the expectation is that it
will event,1alIv he aDproyed by the
House, too.
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