The possibility of expanding the sea-fisheries of Indonesia is a question of much greater importance to the future of the region than might be supposed from western experience, as will be shown by the following considerations:

The population of the East Indies is already very great in proportion to the amount of fertile land potentially available, and is increasing rapidly. The average diet on Java now contains a very low proportion of certain of the essential food-substances called amino-acids, which are most abundant in proteins of animal origin. It is possible that sub-critical deficiencies of these amino-acids, sufficient to reduce general vitality and well-being, are already widespread in the region. These amino-acids are the ones least abundant in the produce of crop-plants which yield the highest returns of energy-foods. Expanded production of these special protein-components from the Indonesian land-surface would therefore necessarily be accomplished at the expense of the potential production of food-calories.