226 THE WHEAT INDUSTRY 



grain is all sacked and hauled directly from field 

 to market. Because of this method there is like- 

 wise no farm storage in granaries. 



The chief difficulty with the harvest in Argen- 

 tina is the lack of sufficient help. Fields are large, 

 labor scarce, and wages high. The farmer who has 

 planted more than he and his family can care for 

 finds it a difficult task to save his crop. 



The Production of Wheat in Argentina. 

 Wheat production in Argentina has shown a 

 general steady increase since 1870. In 1912 the 

 total crop amounted to 198,000,000 bushels. 1 The 

 yield varies from 10 to 38 bushels per acre, the low 

 yields generally occurring in the northern districts, 

 the high yields in the southern. The cost of 

 production has been estimated to be from $7 to 

 $10 per acre, which would make 50 to 60 cents per 

 bushel. It is interesting to make comparisons 

 with our own states or localities in the matter of 

 yield and cost of production. 



The Exportation of Wheat. - - Exports, which 

 began in a small way in 1878, have increased 

 steadily and so rapidly that Argentina now ranks 

 as one of the greatest wheat-exporting countries 

 in the world. She is favored by having vast 

 areas of easily tillable and highly productive land 

 which is suitable for wheat. Her position on the 

 Atlantic seaboard gives her easy access by water 



l " Argentine Republic," Pan-American Union, August, 1913. 



