104 PRODUCTION 



have increased more slowly since about the }^ear 1906 than before 

 that date ; x third, that few large undeveloped areas, suitable for 

 agriculture and of reasonable accessibility, now remain in the 

 temperate regions ; fourth, that the quantities of concentrated 

 animal feedstuffs which have entered into international trade 

 have been enormous, and that these must be considered together 

 with the movements of animal foodstuffs ; and fifth, that the ex- 

 tensive methods of animal-rearing are passing away in favour of 

 the more intensive methods. 



So far as the surplus-producing countries are concerned, the 

 present time, in fact, represents a transition stage between the 

 older pastoral, and the newer intensive, system of producing 

 animal foodstuffs. It would appear, however, that the change 

 requires to be hastened, that further technical progress is urgently 

 needed in the whole agricultural industry, and especially in animal 

 husbandry, in order to bring the supplies of animal foodstuffs into 

 line with demand. Throughout the world agricultural resources 

 are still abundant, but a general re-organisation is required so as 

 to utilise these resources to better advantage. It will be seen in 

 the next chapter that the additional resources of the tropical 

 regions may be used increasingly in the future to raise both directly 

 and indirectly the world's output of animal foodstuffs, and make 

 larger supplies of these articles available in the temperate regions, 

 independently of their own resources. In the meantime, any 

 marked shortage of animal foodstuffs in the international market 

 indicates that the technical developments in the direction of more 

 intensive agricultural methods have lagged behind the needs of the 

 times. 



1 The total exports of meat and meat products from the nine principal 

 countries rose from 2,734 million Ibs. in 1895 to 3,478 million Ibs. in 1905, 

 which gives an average increase of 2'72% per annum ; by 1912 the total was 

 3,861 million Ibs., making an average increase of but 1*57% per annum for 

 the period 1905-12. 



