Budapest, June 22.
Economic experts here yesterday said the Balkan countries could do little to alleviate the food shortage which they predicted will be inevitably felt throughout Europe this year, unless the war ends in the next several months.
Experts- pointed out that all the Balkan nations face very serious agricultural and industrial problems as a consequence of the bottling up of the Mediterranean by Italy's entry into the war. They are now striving to straighten out the economic situation in the Balkans.
Significant in this connection was the statement of Hungary's Premier, Count Paul Teleki, expressing belief that the war would end shortly and pointing out that-a long war would mean a terrific economic strain on all Balkan countries.
From the agricultural side, weather conditions recently have been extrem moly bad in the Balkans, as well as that the rest of Europe, and crops have been severely damaged. In addition, military pressure in Yugoslavia, Hungary, Rumania, Bulgaria, Turkey and Greece, which were under arms during the precious spring months, kept men away from their fields and promises to cause a shortage of men during the coming harvest if the state of international emergency prevails.
The biggest problem in the Balkans is not food, but fodder. Already there is a fodder shortage in all the Balkan countries with the exception of Rumania and Rumanian acreage has generally fallen 25 per cent. Agricultural expe-ts predict next year will see a serious fodder shortage—United Press.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.