WORLD'S MEAT SUPPLIES.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VII, Issue 600, 6 September 1913, Page 3

WORLD'S MEAT SUPPLIES.

According to a report of the British Board of Agriculture there is a shrinkage in t.ie world's meat supplies, and Great Britain is practically relying upon Australia and Argentina for increased quantities. The position is made worse by the fact that the United States is fast reverting from the position of a food-exporting country to that of an importer of foodstuffs, and that to a considerable extent. In a Consular report giving the trade figures of the United States for 1912 a concrete example of the position is found in the statistics relating to wheat. From these it appears that during the years ended June 30th, 1902-11, exports of wheat products dropped frutn over 234,700,000 to 69,300,000 bushels, while imports increased from 120,000 to over 1,100,000 bushels, the total production of the country declining by more than 113,300,000 ' bushels. Similarly, figures relating to meat and dairy produce show snotmous decreases m exports and steady increases in imports. A few of the figures relating to imports of foodstuffs are as follow:—Live cattle from 94,000 in 1902 to 180.000 in 1911. macaroni from 28000,0001b weight in 1903 to over 114,000,0001b in 1911, an increase of over £170,000 worth of sardines, etc, cured herring from 42,00,00001b to 79,000,0001b weight, butter from under 500.0001b weight to over 1,000.0001b, cheese from 17,000,0001b weight to nearly 60.000,0001b, and macerel from 23,500,0001b weight in 1905 to over 35,00,00001b in 1911. These figures clearly prove, states the report, that the United States is now not in a position to feed itself, and that its power to feed the world has pas3ed from it. The reasons for this change are manifold. The increasing population of the States, the rush from the country to the towns increasing the numbers uf consumers and decreasing that, of producers, the increasing value o f land, making it more profitable to use it for other than agricultural purposes, closer settlement, and many other factors have contributed to it.