albumen. Thus,
there will be an apparent deficit of 22,590 billion calories and 764,000
tons of albumen. On the other hand, the authors hold that the minimum
physiological requirements are only 56,750 billion calories, containing
1,605,000 tons of albumen, which would give a large surplus of calories
and a small deficit of albumen, but they make certain recommendations
which, if carried into effect, would bring the available supply up to
81,250 billion calories and 2,023,000 tons of albumen.
Germany raises (average for 1912-13) about 4,500,000 tons of wheat and
imports nearly 2,000,000 tons, (about 73,000,000 bushels.) On the other
hand, it exports about 530,000 tons net of the 11,900,000 tons of rye
produced. It imports nearly 3,000,000 tons of low-grade barley and about
1,000,000 of maize, both chiefly for feeding stock. Its net imports of
grain and legumes are 6,270,000 tons. Of its fruit consumption, about 30
per cent. has been imported. While Germany has been producing nearly its
entire meat supply at home, this has been accomplished only by the very
extensive use of foreign feedstuffs. The authors of this work estimate
that the imports of meats and animals, together with the product from
domestic animals fed with foreign feedstuffs, amount to not less than 33
per cent. of the total consumption. They also hold that about 58 per
cent. of the milk consumed in Germany represents imports and the product
of cows fed with foreign feedstuffs. Nearly 40 per cent. of the egg
consumption was hitherto imported. The consumption of fish has averaged
576,000 tons, of which not less than 62 per cent. was imported; and the
home fisheries are now confined, besides the internal waters, almost
wholly to the Baltic Sea--which means the loss of the catch of 142,000
tons hitherto taken from the North Sea. Even the German's favorite
beverage, beer, contains 13 per cent. of imported ingredients.
The authors assume, as already intimated, that nearly all of these
imports will be lost to Germany during the full duration of the war, and
they take up, under this big limitation, the problem of showing how
Germany can live upon its own resources and go on fighting till it wins.
They undertake to show how savings can be made in the use of the
supplies on hand, and also how production can be increased or changed so
as to keep the country supplied with food products.
In the first place, they insist that the prohibition of the export of
grain
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