REPORT OF CHIEF OF BUREAU OF AGRICULTURAL 



ECONOMICS. 



United States Department of Agriculture, 



Bureau of Agricultural Economics, 



Washington, D. C, October 12, 1923. 

 Sir: I have the honor to transmit herewith a report of the work 

 of the Bureau of Agricultural Economics for the fiscal year ended 

 June 30, 1923. 



Respectfully, 



Henry C. Taylor, 



Chief of Bureau. 



Hon. Henry C. Wallace, 



Secretary of Agriculture. 



The first year's accomplishments of the Bureau of Agricultural 

 Economics, a consolidation of three separate bureaus that formerly 

 handled economic subjects, presents conclusive evidence of the in- 

 creased effectiveness which has resulted from this combination. The 

 benefits have been threefold: The development of new forms of 

 helpful information for agriculture in the present period of read- 

 justment; the expansion of fundamental studies in farm organiza- 

 tion, marketing, and crop estimating; and an increased efficiency 

 of the entire personnel through closer cooperation, broadened knowl- 

 edge, and the stimulation of an enlarged organization. 



NEW SERVICES TO THE FARM INDUSTRY. 



In the period of agricultural readjustment experienced during the 

 past year it was important for farmers to secure the facts bearing 

 upon current problems that would give them the greatest aid in 

 making the right decisions in planning farm operations and in 

 marketing their products. The first attention of the bureau staff 

 has been directed constantly toward these problems in response to 

 the greatly increased demands upon the bureau for information oa 

 the general conditions of supply and demand, price trends, the effect 

 of various factors, domestic and foreign, upon the farmer's returns, 

 and for information bearing upon problems of crop readjustment. 



In gathering facts bearing upon these questions, the closer rela- 

 tionship of workers in farm management, marketing, and crop esti- 

 mating has been especially helpful. By bringing the field services 

 of these three lines into closer contact, the interchange of important 

 information has been facilitated, and research, service work, and 

 extension teaching has been made more effective. The bureau is now 

 in a position to present a complete picture of the economics of agri- 

 culture from the problems of the individual farm through the prob- 

 lems of distribution and marketing to the more general considera- 

 tions of world supply, consumer demand, and foreign competition. 



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