minutes ago, one of the reasons for that was that their supplies of forage did not make either meat or dairy cattle a particularly attractive proposition. There is a long winter, and it was necessary to import large quantities of forage and roughage.

The Agronomy Department, during the past 2 or 3 years, has found that the forage situation can be very greatly improved by the introduction of brome grass, which they were not using before, and they have taken steps in the long-range program for the development of a legume that will be satisfactory. At present Siberian alfalfa is the only legume that is surviving the winter, and in its present form it is not quite fully satisfactory as a forage crop. It needs a certain amount of breeding and crossing with Grimm alfalfa, which is also a cold resistant alfalfa.

Mr. HORAN. Has not 90-day wheat been grown up in the area near Fairbanks?

Mr. FRACKER. It has.

Mr. HORAN. What is that quick-maturing wheat?

Mr. FRACKER. I do not have the name of the wheat that has been grown up there. We are trying out 60 varieties of wheat in that area along with a hundred varieties of barley and more than a hundred of oats, to find out which are the most productive and the best adapted to the area. We have recommended and already-in spite of the fact that this is only the third year in this particular program-have certain barley and oats varieties into the seed multiplication stage. The seed has been multiplied in the experiment stations of Montana and Idaho, and the results, that is, the resulting yield from the multiplication of the seed is ready for use by the farmers this summer.

GRAZING AREAS

Mr. ANDERSEN. How is the forage situation in the forested areas? Do you have good grass there where sheep and cattle can range?

Mr. FRACKER. The commercial forest, Mr. Andersen, is all in southeast Alaska in the island areas, down north and south of Juneau, from Skagway to Ketchikan. Both the two national forests and the land being developed by the forest Service, are in that general area, and that is the hope for commercial and productive forestry. There is no agriculture in that area whatever except a few gardens and a few small dairy installations near the towns.

The agriculture is being developed in the main body of Alaska outside the southeastern forested area. This large region is not promising for commercial forestry.

Mr. ANDERSEN. You do not have grazing areas, then, as they do in Montana, and the west, in conjunction with the forestry part of the country, do you?

Mr. FRACKER. In the so-called Alaska Peninsula running down toward the Aleutians there are open grazing areas.

some on Kodiak Island and in the Kenai area.

There is also

Mr. ANDERSEN. In the main body of Alaska there is none?

Mr. FRACKER. In the Matanuska Valley the land is not open grass.

Brush and small trees have to be cleared off.

POSSIBILITY OF USING GREENHOUSES

Mr. HORAN. What is the greenhouse situation?

Mr. FRACKER. The greenhouse-you mean experimental greenhouse?

Mr. HORAN. Yes.

Mr. FRACKER. The greenhouse for which the Federal appropriation is made has not been completed. It was provided for in the appropriation of 1950 and contracted for before the end of the year and is expected to be completed as soon as the weather opens this spring.

Mr. HORAN. When you approach Stockholm you think that the whole of that part of Sweden is under glass, and the same thing is true of certain areas in Belgium now where they produce special types of grapes, I guess it is.

Is the possibility of expanding or improving or developing quickgrowing crops-I notice you list here Highmoor and Delcrow cucumbers being grown under glass, and some of the growers are developing these varieties in their own greenhouses. Definitely, I would imagine that the per fection of a greenhouse technique in Alaska that would fit her economy and her climate would be one of the things that you will work on when you complete this greenhouse at the experimental station.

Mr. FRACKER. That is correct. The current and present population of Alaska is very much interested in being able to grow what it can under glass. It is very common for the settlers and the residents of towns to have enough glass greenhouse space so that they can provide for some of their own needs. Being a frontier Territory the development of commercial glass production is still limited.

Mr. HORAN. That is all.

Mr. WHITTEN. Any further questions?

(No response.)

Mr. WHITTEN. If not, I believe that will be all.
I certainly thank you, gentlemen.

OFFICE OF FOREIGN AGRICULTURAL RELATIONS

WITNESSES

STANLEY ANDREWS, DIRECTOR, OFFICE OF FOREIGN AGRICULTURAL RELATIONS

FRED J. ROSSITER, ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR, OFFICE OF FOREIGN AGRICULTURAL RELATIONS

ERIC ENGLUND, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, OFFICE OF FOREIGN AGRICULTURAL RELATIONS

C. E. MICHELSON, HEAD, DIVISION OF ADMINISTRATION, OFFICE OF FOREIGN AGRICULTURAL RELATIONS

RALPH S. ROBERTS, DIRECTOR OF FINANCE AND BUDGET OFFICER, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Mr. WHITTEN. We have come to the Office of Foreign Agricultural Relations. I would like to insert pages 401 and 402 of Volume 2 of the justifications at this point.

(The pages referred to follow:)

PURPOSE STATEMENT

The Office of Foreign Agricultural Relations collects, interprets, and disseminates economic data and other information on foreign production and consumption of farm products. Through systematic, regular and special reports from agricultural attachés abroad (State Department employees) and from specialists on temporary assignment in other countries, and also by exchange of information with foreign governments and international agricultural organizations, the Office obtains current facts that are used to advise American farmers and business firms handling farm products of important developments abroad that affect their interests. Such information is also made available to the Congress, other agencies of government, and United States representatives at international conferences to aid in properly protecting the agricultural interests of the United States on questions of policy.

Other major activities of the Office financed by transfer of funds from other Federal agencies include:

1. The direction of training programs for foreign agricultural leaders brought to this country by the Economic Cooperation Administration to observe American practices and institutions in the field of agriculture. Through the facilities of this Office, other agencies of the Department, and of State land grant colleges and State extension services, trainees are afforded opportunity to gather information for application in their respective countries.

2. Technical collaboration with foreign governments, under which program scientific and technical services are extended to cooperating countries to aid in management of agricultural stations, improve public service in agriculture, and conduct research projects. This program, formerly financed by the Depargment of State under the United States Information and Educational Exchange Act of 1948, is now being carried on pursuant to the Act for International Development (Title IV of Public Law 535, the Foreign Economic Assistance Act of 1950). The headquarters staff is located in Washington, D. C., with technical collaborators assigned to eight cooperative stations and four agricultural missions in Latin America and seven agricultural technical groups in the Eastern Hemisphere.

On November 30, 1950, employment totaled 346, of which number 56 were outside continental United States.

Mr. WHITTEN. We are glad to have you with us, Mr. Andrews, and we have many good comments on the work of you, Mr. Rossiter, and the other gentleman here. We will be glad to have your general statement at this time, Mr. Andrews.

RELATIONS WITH THE STATE DEPARTMENT

Mr. ANDREWS. Mr. Chairman, when I appeared last year before this group we had just finished a hearing before Mr. Cooley's committee, the policy making agricultural group in Congress, during which he went into some detail, not only as to what OFAR did to justify itself, but into our relations with State Department and matters of that kind.

There has been, and is considerable concern about Agriculture-State relations, and I wondered, sir, if before I go into the money end of this hearing you would permit me to report on the development of our relations with State Department.

Mr. WHITTEN. We would be delighted to have it. This committee for several years has been concerned over the situation which we felt has kept back the results that we had a right to expect. To a large extent this was because the State Department originally insisted that your field people be primarily State Department employees, and later insisted that their reports to you come through the State Department rather than direct. We do not mean to appear to be in conflict with