865.5018/1–647
Memorandum by the Adviser in the International Resources Division (Stillwell) to the Under Secretary of State for Economic Affairs (Clayton)
Subject: US Shipments of Grain and Flour to Italy
In December we loaded at US ports approximately 98,000 tons of grain and flour for Italy.
For January, allocation has been made to UNRRA sufficient to give Italy approximately 125,000 tons of grain and out of a total of 100,000 tons of flour allocated to UNRRA, UNRRA has agreed to ship 75,000 tons to Italy making a total of 200,000 tons wheat equivalent for Italy in January.
We still are having some difficulty with the Department of Agriculture in getting them to actually purchase flour. They have scheduled none of the above-mentioned flour for actual shipment yet. I am working on this at the present time but may need your help in calling on Secretary Anderson to take immediate and direct action to see that these flour allocations are actually translated into procurement and shipment.1
- In a subsequent memo of the same day, not printed, Stillwell reported that he had learned from the Department of Agriculture that its procurement of flour had been so slow that it was likely that Italy would get no more than half of what had previously been indicated; that total shipments of grain and flour to Italy in January would probably be no more that 160,000 tons. He mentioned that: “It now appears that Agriculture’s wheat procurement program is at a complete stand-still because the Secretary of Agriculture has placed a ceiling of $2 a bushel at Kansas City on Government purchases.” (865.5018/1–647)↩