Denmark Agriculture Commerce

ITH the demand for foodstuffs in the present period of reconstruction, Denmark by reason of her remark- able capacity as a producer of dairy and animal products is rapidly as- suming a position of unusual promi- nence in international affairs. Al- though the country’s output has been limited to a considerable extent by conditions arising out of the war, Denmark is one of the few nations of the world which at the present time have a surplus of food available for export. The large financial reserves accumulated during the period of high prices of the last five years are being utilized in extend- ing the commerce of the country and in bringing about more normal conditions in its agricultural industry. Normal Production of Foodstuffs Denmark is one of the most highly developed food pro- ducing nations in the world. Nearly two-thirds of the land, divided into farms averaging about 35 acres each, is un- der intensive cultivation. In 1914 the number of cattle to the square mile was nearly twice as great as in the leading cattle states of America. Denmark had at that time in pro- portion to its population a larger number of dairy cows than any country in Europe and held a leading position in the relative size of its stocks of swine and poultry. Before the war the total annual output of Danish agri- cultural products was valued at about $268,000,000 of which more than one-half was exported. In 1914 Denmark was the largest exporter of butter in the world. There were 1,503 dairies with an aggregate annual production of about 128,742 tons of butter and 17,123 tons of cheese. It is interesting to note that, due to the scientific methods of feeding employed by the Danish farmers, the average annual yield of milk per 5