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Abstract
The commercial farm problem has been defined as
an excess of farm output over utilization at "satisfactory"
prices. Evidence of farm production in
excess of market outlets has been apparent in declining
farm commodity prices and net incomes, growing
stocks of farm products, or large Government
costs for price supports, production restraints, and
surplus disposal. Programs such as free markets,
mandatory production controls, and action to increase
exports and the mobility of farm resources
have been advanced as possible solutions to problems
of overproduction. A definitive analysis of ameliorative
measures requires first an estimate of the problematic
gap—the excess capacity in agriculture.
This gap, defined in terms of the difference between
the existing situation and some acceptable norm, is
one measure of the magnitude of the problems faced.