AGRICULTURAL SITUATION IN EAST GERMANY

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00810A005100200009-7
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 20, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 20, 2007
• Sequence Number: 9
• Publication Date: October 28, 1954
• Content Type: REPORT

Approved For Release 2007/07/20: CIA-RDP80-0081 OA005100200009-7
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
INFORMATION REPORT
COUNTRY East Germany
SUBJECT Agricultural Situation in East Germany
This material contains Information af[ectlft the Ira-
tlonal Defense of the United Dtates within the mean-
Inr of the >teplanage Laws. Title 18. U.S.C. New. 7114
and 744. the transmission or revelation of which In
any manner to an unauthorbsd person Is peohiblted
by law.
REPORT
DATE DISTR.
NO. OF PAGES
REQUIREMENT
REFERENCES
THE SOURCE EVALUATIONS IN THIS REPORT ARE DEFINITIVE.
THE APPRAISAL OF CONTENT IS TENTATIVE.
(FOR KEY SEE REVERSE)
28 October 1954
25X1
1. Approximately 400,000 to 450,000 metric tons of seed potatoes were lacking
in East Germany in April 1954. No deliveries of this amount could be made
because the VEAB maintained only restricted storage apace for edible potatoes.
Large amounts of storage potatoes froze during the winter because of improper
storage. and because of a shortage of straw with which to cover them, In
Kreis Chemnitz, farmers were going to private homes begging for potatoes to be
used for seed purposes. In Stadtkreis Dresden, edible potatoes were selling for
up to 75 DME per 50 kilograms. According to a. directive of the East German
Council of Ministers, 125 kilograms of potatoes per person are to be made .w.
available for storage purposes in the fall of 1954. Amounts of spring potatoes
to be delivered hPfore that time vary a great deal, and negotiations are taking
place between the State- Secretariat for the Collection and Purchase of Agricultural nuhxta
the East German Government concerning the amount of potatoes to be.made
.available. Fodder potatoes for pigs, which were originally to be delivered to
the farmers, could not be issued at all because of the serious'potato shortage.
2, Because. of the. serious fodder situation, which was the result of the shortage of
planned fodder grain imports from the USSR, it was also impossible to'deliver
fodder grain to farmers. ' Attempts to obtain fodder grain from the
Satellites were ineffectual. -For example, only, 1,500(metric tons of fodder barley
were obtained from the-Balkans. Promises made by the-East German Government to
deliver fodder grain and fodder potatoes could not be fulfilled;, hence an inorease
in meat production was out of the question. Pigs in nationalized pig-fattening
installations, which did not die as a result of hog cholera and erysipelas
(Rotlauf), were not expected to reach the weight necessary for slaughtering
becau iI of the extremely serious fodder siti,st,i nr, The supply .of rye to the
population, until the!!nextr."h1r*ist,?,,ie' 80;000 tons, short.. 't'his shortage was
the result of the failure of the 1953 rye-collection and purchase program and of
unsufficient imports of rye from the USSR. As a result of this, the Council of
Ministers issued a directive that no more pure rye bread could be baked; rye
bread must contain 25% wheat,, This situation means that once more the Government
SECRET
STATE T #X ] ARMY - NAVY X AIR -E I AEC 10RR Ei
(NOTE, Weeb,OMn dIMribullen Indicted by "X") Field dlefribullan by "#".)
Approved For Release 2007/07/20: CIA-RDP80-0081 OA005100200009-7
 Approved For Release 2007/07/20: CIA-RDP80-0081 OA005100200009-7
will have to spend some 15,000,000 DME to maintain the present price of
bread. Only thirty percent of the planned area to be planted with summer
and winter rye can be planted, because no summer rye seed is available.
3. Difficulties also became noticeable in connection with the planned production
of margarine and oils. These difficulties arose because not enough oil seeds,
such as rape and poppy, were collected and purchased in 1953. On the other
hand, a great deal of mustard seed, which has a low oil content, was obtained.
In addition, the soybean and peanut deliveries promised by China for the
first quarter of 1954 did not begin until the end of March 1954, and then were made
only irregularly.
4. The legume situation continues to be deplorable. Requests of the workers,
recently, for legumescould not be granted; the wholesale houses(HO)were not
in a position to offer them for sale. This was the result of only about a
55% fulfilment of the 1953 collection and purchase program and insufficient
imports of legumes from the USSR and Satellites.
Approved For Release 2007/07/20: CIA-RDP80-0081 OA005100200009-7