1.
GV EXT OECD building in Paris with delegates entering (2 shots)
0.08

2.
CU Netherlands delegate
0.11

3.
SV Belgian delegates
0.15

4.
SV Austrian delegates
0.18

5.
SV Canadian delegates
0.21

6.
CU PAN FROM Finnish TO Spanish delegates
0.26

7.
SV Greek delegates
0.29

8.
CU Irish delegates
0.31

9.
SV Italian delegates
0.35

10.
CU PAN Japanese delegates
0.43

11.
SV & CU Secretary-General seated (2 shots)
0.51

12.
SV U.K. delegates
0.54

13.
SV Swedish delegates
0.58

14.
SV Delegates seated (2 shots)
1.05



Initials BB/1645



Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved

Background: In Paris, 24 Agriculture Ministers representing countries belonging to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, OECD, met on February the 9th for a two-day conference. The last OECD meeting of agriculture ministers was held in 1973. The Paris Conference was called to discuss subsequent developments and future plans within the organisation.

SYNOPSIS: The meeting was held in the OECD headquarters in Paris, with delegates arriving from countries as distant as New Zealand and Japan, as well as nearby European countries like Holland, Belgium and Austria. One of the main tasks the organisation has set itself is to regulate the production and distribution of agricultural output on a global basis. Agricultural departments of all member countries are kept informed about trends in production and demand, and whenever an uneven buildup of produce becomes evident, steps are taken to redistribute the excess.

The OECD's Secretary-General Emile Van Lenner told delegates that one of the most pressing jobs to be tackled at the moment was the rationalisation of cereal stocks, which have built up enormously since the 1973 conference. Other fields to be discussed include livestock production, and redistribution of foodstuffs to Third World countries.