International Commodity Clearing House

Abstract

The departure of Boyd Orr did not signal the end of his ambitious proposal and the problems they were designed to overcome. It was obvious that his bold aim was metaphorically and politically ‘a bridge too far’ but as a platform for venting the desires of many governments, especially the poorer and smaller ones, it was invaluable. And the issues it raised were to be addressed for many years to come. Therefore, it was understandable that the next director-general of FAO, Norris E. Dodd from the United States (1948–53), who had strongly supported the WFB proposal at the Copenhagen conference in 1946, should seek to salvage what he considered to be some of its more acceptable elements. The opportunity presented itself when the FAO Council, which met in Paris in June 1949, requested the FAO directorgeneral to report on the underlying causes of emerging commodity trade problems and present recommendations for possible action by governments. A group experts was appointed, with John B. Conliffe of the University of California as chairman, ‘to propose measures for promoting the balanced expansion of world trade in agricultural products’, in order to assist the FAO director-general make his recommendations, no doubt taking the experience of what had happened to the WFB proposal into account.