The World Food Programme (WFP) said Monday that North Korea could likely suffer a significant break in the supply of aid cereals in April because donors' shipment schedules are coming up on a slack period.

The U.N. food aid organization said in the No. 6 issue of its weekly Emergency Report that shipping schedules will lead to distribution reductions in the coming months based on donor call-forward orders, unless the shipments are accelerated.

The report said it also warned the North will face a break in the supply of beans and oil this and next month due to smaller-than-normal shipments.

The report said however, generous donations of 500,000 tons of rice from Japan, 100,000 tons of corn from South Korea and other shipments from the United States, Italy and the European Union have eased the cereals pipeline for 2001.

The report reminded agencies that the North suffered its coldest month since 1949 in January.

The report said icy road conditions last month forced the reduction of WFP's food distribution monitoring activities.