any of the grains or sugar as far as its total value to the world is concerned. Its importance to the potato-growing nations of Europe, however, should not be underestimated. Germany, the largest producer before the war, was also the largest importer. The net import into Germany-17,000,000 bushels-was over three times as large as the net imports of Great Britain-5,100,000 bushels. Before the war the western allies, with the exception of the United Kingdom, and the neutral countries except Switzerland, were either exporting potatoes or fully meeting their own needs. The 1917 prospects

indicate a surplus production of potatoes in Italy,10 and good crops in France and Great Britain. In the United States, the potato crop this year is given as 100,000,000 bushels above the pre-war average, and 175,000,000 above last year's crop." The supply of this staple vegetable should be more than sufficient to meet the normal demand, and help relieve the great shortage in grains.

Sugar. In the year preceding the war, 1913, the world sugar crop was given at 20,883,000 tons. The wheat crop was 114,000,000 tons. This makes sugar one of the bulky food products and because of the high food value of sugar it stands next to rice and wheat as a world food. Of the 20,883,000 tons of sugar, 11,118,000 were cane sugar, the balance beet sugar. With the exception of the 733,000 tons of beet sugar produced in the United States, practically the entire beet sugar supply was grown in Central Europe. Germany, Russia and Austria-Hungary alone produced 67.4 per cent of the total beet sugar and 32.4 per cent of the total sugar supply. Germany and Austria-Hungary, and, to a lesser extent, Russia, were enormous exporters. In fact, every country of Europe, with the exception of Great Britain, Italy, Switzerland and Norway, and some of the Balkan States, was either meeting all its own sugar needs or producing for export. The United Kingdom, however, was not producing any sugar, and was, next to the United States, the largest importer of sugar in the world. Of the 2,000,000 tons of sugar imported into the United Kingdom, about one-third came from Germany and Austria-Hungary. Belgium, Holland and France were also exporting sugar to England.

The outbreak of the war made necessary a radical change in Europe's sugar supply. The big export market for German and Austrian sugar being shut off, sugar-beet production in these countries gave place to other crops. The Belgium beet sugar and much of the sugar-beet area of France came under Germany's control, so that even France was deprived of her own sugar supplies. The neutral importers, Norway and Switzerland, have remained in touch with the Central European sugar countries, but the western nations have been compelled to go to the tropics. This has given a great impetus to cane sugar growing.

In Russia there has been a great decline in beet sugar produc10 Commerce Reports, August 11, 1917, p. 547.

11 Monthly Crop Report, September, 1917.

tion with the progress of the war. So great has been the decline that, according to the International Sugar Journal, 12 Russia this year will not produce enough to supply her needs.

FIG. 8.

PRODUCTION, EXPORT AND IMPORT OF SUGAR IN THE TEN LEADING SUGAR PRODUCING COUNTRIES, AND THE IMPORTS OF THE UNITED KINGDOM, CHINA AND CANADA. ARRANGED IN ORDER OF PRODUCTION, 1913.

A large percentage of the cane sugar of the world has been produced in Cuba, India, Java and Hawaii. Of these countries, India 12 XXX, pp. 304, 305, July, 1917.

consumed all her enormous production and imported 961,000 tons in addition. The other tropic countries mentioned, together with the other West Indian Islands, Brazil and Peru, produce for export. The war has greatly stimulated the sugar industry of the tropics, especially of the West Indies, South America, Formosa and Java, reviving the ancient industry. The 1916-1917 crops of cane sugar will surpass all previous records. England and France are now receiving their sugar import from the East and West Indies, Mauritius and indirectly the United States. The establishment of new