Valedictory

"It is not the atomic bomb, but the food crisis that may destroy us." That was the valedictory, delivered in Geneva last week, of Sir John Boyd Orr, preparing to retire as director general of U.N.'s Food & Agriculture Organization.

For most of his 67 years, Scottish Nutritionist Orr has been trying to get more food to more stomachs. As chief of FAO since 1945, he has pleaded for governments to stop building armaments and use their money to halt erosion. He also demanded an all-powerful food board to divide available surpluses among the world's havenots. But no great nation has been willing to surrender such power.

In the race between population and food supply, said Sir John, population is winning, "and we do not know how to stop it." He pointed out once more that world population has increased almost 200 million since 1939. Harvests that would have seemed bountiful ten years ago are inadequate now. Sir John said that, for his part, he was going home to his farm.

His successor at FAO, Norris E. Dodd, retiring U.S. Under Secretary of Agriculture, was ready to take over where Sir John was leaving off. Said Dodd: "My great hope is that ... I can march forward on the path he marked out."

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