I I I - A proved For Release 2001 11 19 CIA-RDP78B04747A000400020024-0 MliMOlWDXM JroRt - Director I NPIC IAtJ ftA ' Chief I 1 Estimation ot Acrcagoa a ud Yields o r Agricultural Crop ond trom Ovorhead J hotogra pby' l Ono o the J major 1ntell1gonco problems relating to o griculturo in Cotnm Ullist countr1os io an evti luation ot crop prospects and annual production nchicvemcnta tor the major crops At too present time our eatimatos arc bas ed pri mru 'ily on such aourco11 aa current weather 1 nto rmation riress reports for Communist countries and whcn O posoibl o 1 observation a by US Emba aiay of f'ic tnlcs and other traveler In the cane ot the USSR much trui t a ppcara 1n print a bout crop yields 11 1 e xnggore tcd -whilo for Communist China very littl e 1ntorma t1on ia reported 1n the nova or 111 available trom other oourooa · 2 The crop yields ot the USSR end CollliltUllist Ch1na not only pl a ya l •go r a 1 1 1n their internal econome o but determine to a l n rge de grco how much astJi U1 2 1co these countriea can giw to the smaller na tiono which they ero attempting to convert to Communism We beliove there• ore that ' or a numbor ot year• it will be important to know hov wccoss1 1l thoae and poaoibly other countri ce a re 1n mooting their goal a in ag ricultu ro 3 Preliminary conversations with O -pert11 1n the 1'ield o-r aerial photogra lb y auggc r t that gi-vtm' adequate R D mpport 1 thore may oo a good Otcuti l for e dewloping ncv photogral hio techniques that ·would be l We 'ul in eatimat crop typos acreages and yieldo and b dcvol oping e utomatic a cann tng _procedures that would be neces a ry to make tl' 10 whole program feasible for agricu1ture where largo areas must be covored or at least aamplod 4 Sinco we do not know whnt 1t might cost or how long it uld tsko to develop tho n cceaary tcclmiqueo nnd equipment liret would like 01• NPIC to explore the rna tter f'urthor and to advioc us ot your t 'inding11 We vouJ d not 'WWlt l clrge aum11 ot money committed bovi vor 'Until w could give turther conaidorat1on to the be lmico between tho need and the cttort - DD X Collection Ou1chmce Ste ft SECRET Declass Review By NIMA DOD or Release 2001 11 19 CIA-RDP78B04747A000400020024-0 25X 1