•^-^ /, T WEEKLY RE^TIEW MP FARM OUTLOOK LETTER 



By G. L. Jordan 

 Professor, Agricultural Economics 



University of Illinois |fl|. yHftfS- 



Collego of Agriculture 



(Prepared June 10) f*^^^ U^ViCaJlJ Of iOlNo., 

 The now wheat loan will average $1.22 at the farm. 



The House and Senate have passed a resolution permitting the sale of an ad- 

 ditional 50 million "bushels of wheat "by the Commodity Credit Corporation. At the 

 recent rate of sales, this amount of wheat would he disposed of by the end of June. 

 There is no assurguice that the feed wheat program will continue after June 30, "but 

 some congressmen have forecast that contemplated restriction on sales may not mate- 

 rialize. 



In reviewing the national food situation, the U. S. Department of Agricul- 

 ture this week again points out that feed shortages in 19^^ will result unless the 

 rate of feeding is reduced or the output of seme clasees of livestock curtailed. 

 Stocks of grains at the end of May were estimated to "be slightly larger than a year 

 earlier, "but relative to the record production of 19^2 and livestock numbers, stocks 

 are small. 



\ The feed situation will be affected by pasture conditions. Farm pastures 

 got off to an average start this year. During May, pastures in the com belt were 

 favored with plenty of moisture, but the temperature was a little too low to induce 

 maximum growth. In a number of the southern states, pasture conditions were good; 

 but in the western north-central states, including the western com belt, conditions 

 were rather spotted. 



A recent development to help solve distribution problems is the appointment 

 of a War Meat Board. This War Meat Board consists of representatives of the War Food 

 Administration, the U. S. ajrmed forces, the food rationing and price divisions of the 

 Office of Price Administration and representatives of the meat industry. The meat 

 board will attempt to bring about the allocation and distribution of the national 

 meat supply, taking into consideration the quantity of meat available from day to 

 day emd fron week to week. 



Circumfltances have forced seme economies in distribution which we hope will 

 be carried over into peacetime. For example, it is reported that the regulations of 

 the Office of Defense Transportation in St. Louis have already reduced mileage 5^ P©r 

 cent in connection with retail milk delivery. Likewise, milk and cream pickup routes 

 are being revised to make substantial savings in mileage and man hours. 



Although the world will be some hundreds of billions of dollars poorer as a 

 .result of the war, we shall have learned to produce new and. more efficient machines 

 and other goods. One development in the field of agriculture has been the necessity 

 to shift to new types of processed foods, particuleucly dehydrated foods, in order to 

 conserve shipping space ajid tonnage and to improve the keeping quality of foods. We 

 are now drying a substantial fraction of our egg output in the corn belt. More em- 

 phasis is also being placed upon dried fruits and milk powders. All of these develop- 

 ments will have an affect upon Illinois agriculture, particularly after the war when 

 the demands will once more not be able to absorb everything that farmers are able to 

 produce at the favorable prices we have today. 



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