REVERSE LEND-LEASE

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXX, Issue 21172, 13 August 1943, Page 4

REVERSE LEND-LEASE

NEW ZEALAND’S PART “A PRODIGIOUS FEAT” The extent to which American forces in the south Pacific area are benefiting from the increased production of food in New Zealand and AusIraiia is mentioned, by Francis Flood in flic National Geographic'. Magazine in an article on lend-lease and reverse lend-lcase. During 1942, the writer states, American troops received under reverse lend-lease more beef, veal, iamb and mutton from Australia and New Zealand than the United States had sent to, all its Allies, including Britain and Russia, "in the last six months of 1942." ho says, "we lend-' leased food at the rate of about lGlb. of food for each person in the Urited States, while Australia and New Zealand lond-leased food to us at the rate of 261 b. lor each person in those two countries. "One-third of all New Zealand s farm workers and onc-haiV of all the men of military age are under arms,” the writer, continues. "That is a mobilisation equivalent to 21,000,000 men under arm:: in the United States, 13,000.000 in the Army and. 8,000,000 in the Home Guard.” Any American dairyman would say that such a loss in man-power would mean a great loss in production. "But New Zealand has increased her farm production by 15 per cent in the face of it, with the increase in dairy production greater still.

"And now these New Zealanders, after limiting their owii diet, have joined with Australia, in lend-leasing to us more beef by. 40 per cent, than we lend-lease to all our Allies,” he says, "Of all the lend-lease facts this prodigious feat is one of the most impressive. First, those agricultural democracies prove that farm production can be maintained and increased in spite of tremendous military and war-industry demands on labour, and second, after producing extra food under, such difficulties, they are.will-? ing to ration themselves rigidly." The most, important result, the writer concludes, is the great, saving in shipping, riot only of trie meat, but of a much greater tonnage of other foods. ■ By, supplying the. foods on the spot, Australia and New Zealand were freeing thousands of. tons of shipping to carry more aeroplanes, tanks, and guns, to the South Pacific, battle theatre. .