LOOMING UP AS GREAT PROBLEM

Dominion, Volume 37, Issue 124, 21 February 1944, Page 4

LOOMING UP AS GREAT PROBLEM

Manpower And Food Production “Both in Australia and New Zealand manpower is looming up as a great problem,” said the High Commissioner for Australia, Mr. T. G. D’Alton, at Lower Hutt, on Saturday. Australia had to supply food to about 5,000,000 people in addition to its own population of 7,000,000, and manufactured munitions materials for other fronts as well. The proportion of enlistments in the forces of the total population was one in eight in Australia, compared with one in nine in Britain and one in 13 in the United States. , In Australia, the number of men and boys between 14 and 65 was 2,816,000. Of these 90 per cent, were either fighting or working. Nearly 860,000 men were enlisted in the armed services. Ever-increasing demands were being made on both Australia and New Zealand for food —food to feed the men fighting in the South and South-west Pacific areas and food to maintain Britain’s sparse rations. ’These demands on our food resources would not decrease. As the war advanced the starving populations of the liberated areas would turn to Australia and New Zealand and- the other United Nations for help. In Australia the demand for more food had been met. Despite the fact that since the outbreak of war the number of men employed in rural industries had fallen by 28 per cent., nine per cent, more beef cattle, 12 per cent, more sheep and 35 per cent, more pigs were being raised. To maintain this great increase of stock manpower was needed. Without it the full benefit of the great efforts made by the primary producers would not be ‘reaped. Only by stretching to the utmost the resources of labour could New Zealand and Australia meet the big demands which were being made, and would be made, on them for food for the United Nations.