To meet the food crisis in South Korea and to rehabilitate
agriculture the Military Government developed program to import
foodstuffs to prevent starvation and to assure Korean urban residents
at least a subsistence diet until indigenous production could be
increased to meet minimum food needs; and a fertilizer import
program designed to restore depleted soils and increase agricultural
production to levels at least as high as had been reached in the past.
In 1945 the Military Government’s attempt to institute a compulsory
system of rice collection for rationing to non-self-suppliers was
largely unsuccessful. In 1946, a poor crop year due to floods, the
Military Government collected 87,428 tons of rice, or about one-sixth
of the total production. In order to supplement indigenous production
to meet the minimum needs of non-self-suppliers in South Korea,
180,848 metric tons of wheat, corn, and flour were imported into
South Korea by the Military Government from May through December,
1946.
A program for the collection of the rice in 1946 was given highest
priority by the Military Government, as one of the most important
ways to ease the food situation, stabilize the economy, and check
the inflationary spiral. This program was fully supported by all
agencies, and it succeeded in collecting a total of 548,000 metric
tons of polished rice, or its equivalent, about 30 per cent of the
total 1946 production.
This successful collection program, coupled with the importation of
275,962 metric tons of cereals purchased with U. S. funds during the
first seven months of 1947, has enabled the Military Government to
stabilize the food situation in South Korea through the issuance to
non-self-suppliers of minimum staple rations averaging slightly over
300 grams (1,050 calories) per person per day.
_Fisheries_—Fishing was one of the important prewar Korean
industries, ranking sixth in the world. It is second in importance,
only to agriculture in the economic structure of the country. The
industry was, however, largely dependent upon Japan for imports of
fisheries supplies and, has deteriorated seriously since this source
has been cut off. Consumption of fish products has decreased from
a prewar average of 47 pounds per capita per year to 32 pounds.
Korea needs additional fisheries supplies, boats, manila line, nets,
trawls, ammonia for refrigeration, tin plate for canning, salt and
sugar for canning. Fears are expressed that if such supplies are
not forthcoming and fishing operations considerably expanded, the
Japanese will enter claims for fishing grounds now reserved for the
Koreans.
_Foreign Trade_
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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