Statement by the President on the Progress of the Food for Peace Programs in Latin America.

IN MY SPEECH of March 13, 1961 I promised immediately to step up food for peace programs in Latin America.

Pursuant to that pledge, a Food for Peace Mission, which recently visited South America, has submitted a series of specific recommendations and begun negotiations to carry out those recommendations in a number of Latin American nations. Some of them have already been acted on.

Throughout the hemisphere millions of men and women suffer from critical protein deficiencies. By using our surplus feed grains to increase the production of protein-rich poultry and livestock, we can help meet this problem. I am sending Mr. Jonathan Garst--a Food for Peace consultant, and one of the nation's top experts on the use of feed grains--to Brazil to discuss the conversion of surplus feed grains into scarce protein. This will be only the first step, a pilot project, in a hemisphere-wide effort to eliminate protein deficiency and provide a decent diet for all the people of the Americas.

In addition we have offered a million tons of wheat to Brazil for sale for local currencies to be used in Brazilian economic and social development. This wheat program is presently under negotiation with the Brazilian government, and delivery should be scheduled shortly.