Contents
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X. Major trends and policy questions in food and agriculture
A. World situation and outlook
B. Agriculture in economic development
C.
World food program
D. Freedom from hunger campaign and world
food congress
A. World situation and outlook
Salient features in the world situation
Commodity problems
Regional economic integration
Salient features in the world situation
a) Agricultural production
b) Food supplies and population
c) Stocks of agricultural products
d) International trade in agricultural products
e) Planned agricultural development
f) Institutional and related factors
g) Investment resources
h) Training
i) United nations conference on trade and development
10. The Conference reviewed the world food and agricultural situation in the light of the Director General's report, The state of food and agriculture 1963 (c 63/7), together with his supplementary note on developments since the preparation of the main report (c 63/7 - Sup. 1). It endorsed the general analysis of the situation and outlook presented in these documents.
11. World agricultural production (excluding Mainland China, for which official estimates were not available) rose by between 2 and 3 percent in 1962/63, according to preliminary estimates. This increase made up at least partly for the setback of 1961/62, when mainly as a result of bad weather the increase in production had been unusually small and had fallen behind the growth of population. The incomplete information so far available for the current season suggested, however, that production in 1963/64 would be little, if at all, larger than in 1962/63.
b) Food supplies and population
12. The Conference dealt at length with the problem of food supplies for the expanding population. It noted with concern that, while in the world as a whole food production had roughly kept pace with population growth over the preceding four or five years, there had been no further advance, and per caput food production remained at a level
13. In each of the developing regions, in fact, per caput production had tended to decline over the preceding five years. Only in the Near East was food production per caput securely above the prewar level, though, even here, there had been some decline from earlier peak levels. In the Far East, the most populous region in the world, the prewar level had been regained only in the single year 1960/61 (in the region excluding Mainland China), and per caput food production had since declined slightly. In Latin America per caput food production had regained the prewar level in 1958/59 but there had subsequently been a fairly steep decline. In Africa per caput food production in both 1961/62 and 1962/63 was estimated as somewhat less than before the war.
14. The wholly inadequate prewar food consumption levels of the developing regions had been maintained only by reducing their food exports or increasing their imports. Except to the extent that food imports had been obtained on concessional terms, the lag in food production in the developing countries had therefore led to a drain on their scarce supplies of foreign exchange, which were urgently needed for the import of capital goods required for the execution of development plans.
15. In the economically more developed regions the pattern was more diverse. Production per head had continued to grow in western Europe and Oceania. In eastern Europe and the U.S.S.R. there had been little or no sustained increase in per caput production since 1958/59, though per caput demand in towns was rising with higher incomes. In North America the tendency of per caput output to re main constant or even to decline mainly reflected efforts to restrict production in order to avoid the further accumulation of surpluses of some commodities, and production in this region could probably be stepped up quickly, if it were decided to do so.
16. The Conference noted that the contrasting trends of per caput food production in the developing and developed regions resulted largely from their different rates of population growth. The increase in food production in the developing regions had roughly matched that in the more developed parts of the world but their populations had been rising very much faster. Consequently, continuing population growth in the developing countries made the problem of adequate food production more difficult of solution each year. This had led some countries to lay increasing stress on programs of family planning.
17. The failure of food production to keep up with population growth in the developing countries raised the question of how far they would themselves be able to meet their rapidly growing food needs in the future, and how far they would have to rely on increasing imports and food aid. One delegation presented projections indicating that the developing countries would require increasing supplies from outside, including both commercial exports and food aid. It was suggested that the cost of food aid might be shared more widely among the more developed countries. The suggestion was also made that FAO should work out the cost to surplus producers of meeting the requirements of developing countries. Other delegations, on the other hand, while agreeing that existing surpluses should be used to speed economic development, felt that the intentional production of surplus food as a basis for aid was undesirable and would work to the disadvantage of agricultural producers in both recipient and commercial exporting countries. It was also suggested that food exports, whether for trade or aid, should be provided only by the more efficient producers, in order to avoid the expansion of uneconomic production. The Conference agreed that however valuable food aid might be, especially in emergencies and for the provision of capital in the early stages of economic development, hunger and malnutrition in the developing countries could in the long run be overcome only by the development of their own resources.
c) Stocks of agricultural products
18. The Conference noted that unsold stocks of agricultural products had been reduced in both 1961/62 and 1962/63, and that the decline appeared to be continuing in 1963/64. The reduction had been particularly marked in the case of grains. Stocks of sugar were also reduced in 1962/63, but there were large increases for dried skim milk and cotton. For most other agricultural products there was little change in the level of stocks in 1962/63.
d) International trade in agricultural products
19. The decline in world prices for agricultural products had been checked, at least temporarily, in 1962 and 1963. This appeared to reflect to a large extent specific factors affecting the supply of a few individual commodities, notably sugar, grains and sisal.
20. Several delegations suggested the possibility that more permanent structural changes in world trade might be under way. While the recent large grain imports into the countries of eastern Europe, the U.S.S.R. and Mainland China resulted primarily from bad weather and small harvests in these countries. the possibility was noted that with the growth of populations and incomes they might continue to have substantial import requirements. It was also possible that the long period of low prices had finally begun to discourage the expansion of production of some commodities for export. Because of the uncertainty of future developments, the Conference requested the Director-General to keep the situation closely under review.
21. At the same time, however, it was essential that efforts to improve the position of agricultural products on world markets should not be relaxed. Over the last decade the volume of world commercial agricultural exports (excluding shipments on special terms) had risen by about 35 percent. This was by no means an inconsiderable figure, and represented a substantial effort and investment by exporting countries. But agricultural prices on world markets had fallen almost continuously since the Korean war, except for short-lived recoveries in 1954 and 1957 reflecting price increases for only a few commodities. Thus the rise in earnings from the increased volume of trade had been only about 13 percent at current prices. Moreover, if the rising cost of manufactured goods on world markets was taken into account, the real increase in the capacity of agricultural exports to pay for imports of manufactured goods was no more than 6 percent, or about a sixth of what it would have been if the terms of trade had not deteriorated. Some delegations considered that studies of the cost and price structure of manufactured goods should be made by the appropriate agencies.
22. The Conference stressed that the fundamental problem of world agricultural markets was the decline in the terms of trade of agricultural exporters. Price fluctuations and price instability gave rise to most serious problems; they made coherent development planning extremely difficult, and on domestic markets were one of the main obstacles to an adequate expansion of farm production in developing countries. But on world markets as a whole they took second place to the relentless falling trend which restricted export earnings and denied to developing countries the foreign exchange they so urgently needed for healthy economic development.
23. There was as yet no clear evidence of a change in the basic factors which for many years had tended to restrict the growth of the market for agricultural exports. For many products exportable supplies had tended to outrun import demand. The growth of population in the developed countries, still the main importers, was relatively slow. At their income levels further rises in income per head brought rather small increases in the demand for food, and the increase which did occur went largely to more elaborate processing and distribution services. The farm production of the developed countries themselves continued to rise as a result of improved methods, aided by support and protective measures, which tended to raise retail prices and to reduce consumption. For such products as fibers and rubber, synthetic substitutes took an increasing share of the market.
24. In a few sectors such as forest products and some fruits, new markets might in time open up, for example in eastern Europe and the semideveloped countries whose imports from developing countries were still relatively small. The Conference recognized the desirability of closer study of the possibilities of expanding trade among primary exporting countries, particularly countries in process of development, with special reference to the nature, extent, and direction of such trade, and to the institutional arrangements and techniques which might be evolved for promoting its expansion. Whilst taking note of the need for close co-ordination of any possible program of study of these questions with related programs as were already being pursued by other bodies and, bearing in mind especially the interest likely to be shown in these matters by the forthcoming United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, the Conference requested the Director-General to consider the possibility of undertaking some studies in this field. In particular, the Conference requested him to inform the Council and the Committee on Commodity Problems (CCP) of the decisions and recommendations on this subject of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development and, if appropriate, to initiate action for a possible program of work in this field.
25. It was recalled, however, that FAO's detailed projections to 1970 did not indicate, even on favorable assumptions, a growth of the world market for agricultural products which would bear much relation to the needs of the developing countries for increased earnings of foreign exchange. Several delegations therefore suggested that attention be given to increased processing of agricultural products in developing countries, and to the location in these countries of industries for the production of farm requisites.
e) Planned agricultural development
26. The Conference discussed the steps needed to foster agricultural production in the developing countries. It noted that almost all of these countries had now adopted a greater or lesser degree of planning for economic development in order to make the best of their limited resources. It therefore welcomed the Director-General's increased emphasis on assisting countries in formulating and implementing plans for agricultural growth as an integral part of over-all economic development. It also commended the comparative information on agricultural plans given in the report on The state of food and agriculture 1963, and it was suggested that FAO should bring together more complete summaries of the plans of the various countries, so as to keep governments informed of the objectives, targets, and measures that were proposed.
27. Support was given to the recommendation of the World Food Congress for the establishment of an international institute for agricultural development and planning, and also regional institutes such as that proposed by the Sixth FAO Regional Conference for the Near East. A main function of these institutes would be the training of national personnel in agricultural planning. Emphasis was placed on the importance of close collaboration with the training programs of the United Nations regional development institutes.
28. The most careful elaboration of agricultural development programs would, however, be of no avail if they could not be implemented. It was generally recognized that the progress of agricultural science had made it technically possible to achieve the goal of freedom from hunger, but that many social, cultural, economic and political barriers remained to be overcome before this goal could be reached. Some of the obstacles to planning and development were external, such as the problems of international trade. Others were within the developing countries themselves, including shortages of capital, lack of production requisites, institutional defects, and problems of disseminating modern methods to farmers.
29. The Conference stressed the value of country studies to determine the causes of success and failure in agricultural development. Useful examples were the studies of the agricultural development of Japan and Mexico discussed at the World Food Congress. The Director-General was also requested to make case studies of the combinations of measures that had been found most effective in promoting agricultural development in different countries, both developing and more developed.
30. The Conference noted that increased agricultural productivity was necessary both to meet the needs of the growing urban population characteristic of economic development and to raise incomes in agriculture which generally continued to lag behind those in other occupations. It therefore welcomed the study of basic factors affecting agricultural productivity included in the report on The state of food and agriculture 1963. This study constituted a useful opening up of this important subject and would be helpful to the developing countries in their planning.
31. The Conference also commended the study in The state of food and agriculture 1963, concerning fertilizer use. This study clearly illustrated the potential value of fertilizers; but it also stressed that they could not make their full contribution without parallel advances in other technical fields or without changes in the economic and social climate that would encourage the use of improved practices, or without systems of distribution and credit that ensure the availability of fertilizers to farmers when needed. The Conference endorsed the emphasis of the World Food Congress on the importance of measures to increase the use of fertilizers in developing countries.
f) Institutional and related factors
32. In many developing countries the institutional impediments to carrying out development plans were formidable. A major obstacle was obsolete systems of land tenure that left the farmer little or no incentive to increase production for the market. Security of tenure was of special importance for agricultural development. The Conference emphasized, however, that agrarian reform must include the provision of credit and production requisites along with improved marketing services. Many delegations from less developed countries informed the Conference that their governments were following this integrated approach, not only where land reform had been carried out but also in established farming areas as a means of raising productivity, often through cooperative organizations or agricultural development corporations.
33. Much stress was laid on the need for improved marketing especially in developing countries, as a means of ensuring returns to farmers which would encourage increased production and better-quality products. The retail trade was often a particularly crowded sector in the developing countries, and its rationalization was essential. It was necessary to ensure reasonable prices not only for what the farmer sold but also for what he bought. The Conference also emphasized the importance of reducing losses in storage and marketing.
34. Without marketing improvements, price support policies in developing countries were ineffective at the farm level and could have little influence on output. The Conference noted that a number of developing countries were taking steps to make price supports more effective at the farm level.
35. Adequate farm credit was of crucial importance. The Conference noted that a group of specialists, appointed by the Director-General to investigate the needs for financing in agriculture and the possibilities for strengthening the provisions of farm credit through co-operative and other organizations, had stressed the dangers of considering agricultural credit in isolation. Agricultural credit was only one essential factor of the complex and interrelated problems of agricultural development. Institutional arrangements were required that combined the provision of sufficient loanable funds (preferably supervised) with a well-functioning marketing system for agricultural products and with the supply of the necessary production requisites.
36. A major problem was the financing of rural development programs, especially where foreign exchange was involved, for example for fertilizers and other production requisites. The main responsibility for the provision of investment resources must of course rest with the developing countries themselves. As a result of the continued weakness of world markets for agricultural products these countries were gravely hampered in their efforts to find the necessary resources.
37. In connection with foreign aid, there was support for the recommendation of the World Food Congress that an international fund should be established to finance credit to small and medium farmers. The Conference therefore welcomed the increased interest of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development in financing agriculture and farm credit, and stressed that FAO should cooperate closely with the Bank in any measures for expanding resources for agricultural development. Attention was also drawn to recent proposals for the international financing of proposed land reform measures and of crop insurance. Many delegations supported the proposal that the savings made available by general disarmament might be used for development purposes, especially agricultural development.
38. In many countries another major obstacle to development was the lack of trained manpower. The Conference therefore welcomed the Organization's increasing emphasis on training, especially in regional and national centers.
39. Education, training, research and extension were closely linked. It was important that the level of instruction be carefully geared to the level of absorption of the farmers. The example was cited of the short courses for farmers in Tanganyika which concentrated on a single major improvement. In some countries it had been found valuable to direct training and extension primarily toward the more receptive farmers. It was suggested that the Director-General should investigate ways of inducing farmers in developing countries to accept more readily new crops and modifications in methods.
40. The Conference stressed the importance of the training aspects of technical assistance projects. It was suggested that the developing countries could effectively use only a limited number of high-level experts. There was an even greater need for middle-level practical experts who could work with the local people, take executive responsibility, provide training even for people who were not at a very advanced level, and show how their advice could be put into effect.
41. The provision of national counterpart staff to work with foreign experts was mentioned as a special problem. While it was often difficult to provide adequate counterparts, they were essential if the work was to be carried on after the expert had left.
i) United nations conference on trade and development
42. The Conference stressed the importance of the forthcoming United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. This Conference would represent an outstanding opportunity for governments to further international co-operation on commodity questions, to find solutions to the problems of international trade in general, and, through the improvement of conditions in international trade and financing to promote a more rapid economic growth in all countries, and particularly in developing countries. Action resulting in an expansion of international trade and financing could provide solutions to many of the problems now hampering development. In this connection, many delegations believed that no real improvement could be looked for without radically new policies, for agricultural production and trade were often too sensitive to be left solely to the free play of market forces.
43. The Conference agreed that no effort should be spared by governments and international organizations in working for the success of the United Nations Conference. FAO should contribute to the fullest extent in the preparations for the United Nations Conference, its servicing and the follow-up action. The Conference noted that FAO could be particularly helpful by making available its experience on problems of production, consumption and trade in agricultural commodities. It believed that the peculiar economic, social and structural characteristics of agriculture should be given the attention they deserved in the deliberations of the United Nations Conference.
44. The Conference welcomed the program for an FAO contribution undertaken by the Director-General in cooperation with the Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference and adopted the following resolution:
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
THE CONFERENCE
Noting with concern the persistent decline in the terms of trade of agricultural commodities and its adverse effects on export earnings of developing countries,
Recalling that present patterns of international trade result in a decline of the purchasing power of agricultural exporters, while importers, especially in industrially-based countries, benefit from relatively low prices of agricultural commodities, and that such patterns are not conducive to promoting the common welfare by the speedy raising of levels of nutrition and standards of living of the people of developing countries,
Considering that the World Food Congress has acknowledged that the instability of world prices and the very slow growth of the purchasing power of the developing countries are major bottlenecks which may seriously jeopardize the economic growth essential for the conquest of hunger and malnutrition,
Taking into consideration Resolutions 915 and 916 (XXXIV) of the Economic and Social Council and Resolution 1785 (XVII) of the General Assembly of the United Nations,
Welcomes the forthcoming United Nations Conference on Trade and Development;
Stresses the close link between problems of trade and development and those of hunger and malnutrition;
Urges the governments participating in that Conference to include in their delegations specialists in agricultural problems;
Invites the states which will participate in the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, in dealing with the various items of its agenda and documents and proposals contributing to the aims of the Conference, to give serious consideration to the Joint Declaration by representatives of 75 developing countries at the Eighteenth Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations;
Recommends that governments of both the developed and the developing countries give full consideration to the study of international trade problems contained in the agenda of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, paying also particular attention to the study of trade and other policy measures designed to accelerate economic development;
Recommends further that the Director-General give the highest priority to preparatory work for the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, emphasizing the agricultural aspects of the items included in the agenda, and that he make available to the Conference all the FAO experience and technical knowledge of the factors which keep the flows of trade from:
(b) bettering the condition of rural populations, and
(c) contributing toward an expanding world economy in which the gap between developed and developing countries would speedily narrow;
Invites the Director-General to continue, within the framework of the Program of Work for 1964-65 adopted by the FAO Conference, the study of methods to restore health to the markets and stabilize prices of agricultural commodities at equitable and remunerative levels.
(Adopted 5/12/63)
a) Lowering of barriers to trade
b) Harmonization of national agricultural policies
c) International commodity agreements
d) Other measures in the commodity field
e) Trade in semiprocessed and processed goods of agricultural origin
f) Committee on commodity problems
g) Utilization of surpluses as food aid
h) International rice year
45. The Conference considered the main aspects of commodity trade and the role that exports of agricultural commodities played in the development of the developing countries. The Conference was again concerned in particular about the slow growth of earnings from agricultural exports, the steadily worsening terms of trade of agricultural commodities and the fluctuations in prices and quantities exported. These problems still constituted a serious handicap for the development of developing countries. It was felt necessary to press for the adoption of suitable remedial measures. However, it was recognized that certain aspects of those problems needed further study.
a) Lowering of barriers to trade
46. The current difficulties in the commodity field arose in part from the persistence of barriers to imports of agricultural commodities. In the case of many tropical commodities, barriers to trade took the form of import duties and specific internal taxes on the consumption of these commodities. In the case of commodities from the temperate zones, such barriers frequently took the form of quotas or import levies associated with the operation of domestic agricultural support policies. These had the effect of limiting the demand for imports and in some cases of discouraging higher levels of consumption.
b) Harmonization of national agricultural policies
47. It was pointed out that, because of the particular technical, economic, social and institutional aspects of agriculture, its production was subject to a great degree of government intervention. The Conference recognized that countries whose national agricultural policies had an important effect on the production of, and trade in, agricultural commodities had, in determining their policies, responsibilities which extended beyond their boundaries. Thus, there was a need for the harmonization of national price stabilization and support policies in order to achieve sound growth and to maintain stable conditions in international trade. In this respect it was recognized that adherence to the FAO Guiding Principles on National Agricultural Price Stabilization and Support Policies would contribute to improving international markets. With respect to the production of tropical commodities, orderly growth might be secured by harmonization of the policies of exporting countries with a view to keeping production in balance with consumption.
c) International commodity agreements
48. Where conditions were appropriate, international commodity agreements could play a significant role in limiting fluctuations in export prices and possibly raising export proceeds of agricultural producers. Some delegations expressed the view, however, that more general measures, such as the adoption and strengthening of financial arrangements and broader measures regulating international commerce were also needed.
49. A commodity-by-commodity approach to international commodity agreements was generally considered as essential whatever additional approaches on more general lines might be pursued. Measures appropriate for more orderly marketing would differ according to the characteristics of the commodities concerned. It was necessary to establish common general objectives so as to ensure through their application, commodity by commodity, a coherent approach to commodity problems taken as a whole.
50. The attention of the Conference was drawn to some of the conditions required for ensuring greater effectiveness of commodity agreements. Some delegates stressed the importance of broadening the scope of commodity agreements to include not merely trade regulation but also provisions bearing on national production and price policies, particularly in order to ensure that such agreements would adequately serve the aims of development. It was also necessary to ensure the widest possible participation of major producing and consuming countries, since the effectiveness of arrangements depended on the active co-operation of all countries having an important interest in production, consumption and trade of the commodity concerned. But it was pointed out in this respect that governments would be reluctant to commit themselves to such wider agreements unless they were assured that these agreements would remain in force for a reasonably long period of time, and particularly if the recent trend to include a provision allowing participants to withdraw at any time continued.
51. Consideration was given to the definition of the price objectives of international commodity arrangements. Some delegations stressed that an attempt had to be made to obtain a more rational organization of international markets than that now prevailing, with a view to ensuring remunerative returns to exporters. Other delegates stressed that floor prices should be ensured by means of agreed techniques which would prevent market prices from falling below these minimum levels. Minimum prices in international markets were considered by those advocating the need for raising international agricultural prices as acceptable as a transitory measure toward the implementation of a wider organization of international markets, but not as the final objective of such organization. It was also pointed out by some delegations that the adoption of arrangements for raising market prices above levels that would be determined by the forces of supply and demand over longer periods could involve capital transfers in favor of the exporting countries. These transfers could contain an element of aid or support, though it would be difficult to identify in any given situation the size of this element or the best means of implementing it.
52. The possible effects of raising prices in international markets on the production and consumption of individual commodities were debated. As to the effects on consumption, some delegates pointed out that the margin between international prices and domestic retail prices could be reduced by policy measures so that adverse effects on consumption could be avoided. As to the effects on production, it was agreed that further studies were needed to ascertain the possible effects of prices on production and of the types of measures which might be adopted with a view to preventing the emergence of excess supplies. Attention was also drawn to the possibility of using part of a possible price increase for the financing of a fund to aid economic development of developing countries.
53. Some delegates emphasized that, in the case of quite a number of commodities of the temperate zone and of those directly competing with them, it was not possible to obtain adequate and permanent improvements merely by stabilizing prices, since the export earnings of their countries were affected by the impact of expanded production in importing countries. Such problems arose in particular from policies of agricultural protection in industrialized countries. These delegates stressed that measures to be adopted in the commodity field, either through individual commodity agreements or more general arrangements, should include provisions that would assure exporting countries of reasonable guarantees for continued access to import markets. In this respect, stress was laid on the need for special rules for agricultural trade and on the possibility of matching tariff concessions on industrial goods with concessions on agricultural policies designed to assure improved conditions of access for agricultural exports. The need for a study of the costs in real terms of tariff concessions to individual countries was also pointed out.
d) Other measures in the commodity field
54. The attention of the Conference was drawn to other measures for raising export earnings of developing countries, such as improvement of marketing and grading, and of the existing media for the exchange of information on trade and production opportunities. In this connection, several delegates urged more widespread development of co-operative arrangements.
e) Trade in semiprocessed and processed goods of agricultural origin
55. The Conference considered that the economic development of developing nations might be considerably advanced through the diversification of their agricultural production and exports. This diversification could be enhanced by the growth of industries for the processing of agricultural commodities in these countries, not only for domestic consumption but also for export. It was pointed out that the development of such industries might require the adoption of adequate measures by industrialized importing countries to favor imports of semiprocessed and processed goods originating in developing areas. These measures would include the reduction or removal of discriminatory import duties on these imports and the provision of aid for the establishment of processing industries in developing countries. The view was expressed that some developing countries might find it necessary to make use of producer and export subsidies to encourage export diversification.
f) Committee on commodity problems
56. The Conference commended the work accomplished by the Committee on Commodity Problems (CCP).
57. The Committee's regular analysis of the world agricultural commodity situation, in the view of the Conference, served a very useful purpose in crystallizing the main issues confronting governments in the commodity field. The Conference felt that the work on projections of agricultural production, consumption and trade, carried out under its auspices, had succeeded in placing the prospects for agricultural commodities in a clear perspective and thereby helped to define the magnitude and nature of the problems to be faced. The Conference, while mindful of the need for understanding the limitations of present projections and for improvements in the data and methodology on which projections were based, considered that such work should be pursued.
58. The Committee's commodity study groups had continued their intensive study and analysis of trends and policies and in some instances had proceeded to the practical consideration of solutions of stabilization problems. This was the case, in particular, of the work of the FAO Cocoa Study Group, which in 1963 submitted a draft international cocoa agreement to a United Nations negotiating conference. The Conference expressed its keen disappointment at the failure of this negotiating conference and requested CCP. to study carefully the conclusions to be drawn from this setback in the attempts to achieve stabilization by means of a commodity agreement.
59. Note was also taken of the work proceeding in the Group on Grains and the Group on Coconut and Coconut Products in the exploration of stabilization problems and of the planned joint session of the Group on Grains and the Consultative Subcommittee on the Economic Aspects of Rice, which would consider the interrelationships between grains.
60. With the recent establishment of the FAO Study Group on Jute, Kenaf and Allied Fibers, the number of FAO commodity study groups had risen to six. The Conference appreciated that, while these groups were performing a most useful function in providing specialized and concentrated consideration of the problems of the commodities in question, their servicing made significant demands on both Member Governments and the secretariat of FAO and that there was risk of duplication. The Conference was pleased to note, however, that CCP. had adopted and put into effect a body of careful screening procedures and criteria for a periodic review of the activities of its existing groups and for the examination of requests for the establishment of new groups. The Conference noted in this connection that further progress had been made in collaboration between FAO and other intergovernmental commodity bodies with related interests in the commodity field. For example, in considering the request for the establishment of a commodity study group on bananas, CCP had concluded that further consideration of the problems of the commodity should be undertaken, in collaboration with GATT, before a decision on the request could be reached.
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